Indian Maoist Movement

On 28 th July this year the Indian Communist Revolutionary Movement will be observing the 30th death anniversary of Comrade Tarimala Nagi Reddy. His contribution to the Indian Communist Revolutionary Movement was invaluable In the 50th year since the U.S.S R. became revisionist his struggle is more noteworthy.(1n 1956 Kruschev introduced his class –collaborationist line)He was born in a wealthy family on February 11th 1917.His schooling was done in the Theosophical and Rishi Valley schools which were reknowned for their discipline and all –round development of personality. Here he learnt about the dignity of labour ,which was professed by the schools. This teaching set the trend for his revolutionary career. He meticulously studied Marxist –Lenisnst theory and moulded himself with revolutionary consciousness.Remarkably he launched a struggle against the landlord of is own family.Comrade Nagi Reddy’s political ideas were not tolerated by the governing body of the Madras Loyoal college ,thus he moved to Benarus Hindu University,where he had greater avenues to express his political thought. Making untiring efforts he led the student masses towards nationalist politics, socialist ideas and proletarian revolution.Inspite of carrying the burden of leading the student’s movement and participating in the secret organization of the party, his upper-class background prevented him from attaining party membership early.In 1939,the Communist Party of India had full faith in Nagi Reddy’s proletarian revolutionary qualities ,a nd awarded him party membership.Marge Grower ,the then vice-chancellor of Delhi University ,openly challenged the national slogan for the formation of a constituent assembly.Comrade.T.N,openly opposed this,being the leader of the Students Union.Fascinatingly,the Indian Congress leadr Gandhi opposed himGandhi wrote a letterto the Vice –Chancelor of the B.H.U.to demand an apology from T.N.T,T.opposed it andw as thus failed in his law examinations.
Angered T.N.left the college and returned to his village. He started organizing students and youth into the Communist Movement. Several youth were attracted to Comrade T.N’s simple, down-to –earth style of explaining politics and economics. This made the Congress leaders helpless.(They opposed the Communists in the Freedom Struggle)
A booklet by the name of “Economic Effects of War was published by T.N. which explained the economic crisis caused as a result of the 2nd World War.He used it to propogate an anti-war call given by the Communist Party.The British government were now on a hunt for T.N.and thus he went underground. The Government was forcibly collecting levy from the poor and middle peasants ,while leaving the food grain stocks of landlords untouched. Comrade T.N.drew out a programme opposing the levy and collected the details of food grains stocks of landlords and exposed it before the people.T he government issued an arrest warrant on him under he charges of sedition and treason.The owner of the press that published the booklet was taken into custody and Comrade T.N. sentenced to one year imprisonment. Just after he was released from Thiruchirapalli jail, the govt re-arrested him right in the jail premises under the defence of India act.The Country-wide post World War rising shook the British Imperialists and their servants and the Congress Govt.IN THE Madra province unleashed repressio on the Communists An ordinance was passed banning the Communist Party. Comrade T.N.was arrested and released in 1947.
Comrade T.N. played a major role in the Telengana Revolutionary Armed Struggle against the Nizam of Hyderabad. Taking meticulous care of saving the secret party organization and the families of several comrades who came under repeated raids by the police ,Comrade T.N.worked day and night. Party literature was secretly circulated by T.N. ,who multiplied them when copies fell short..His wife Laxmikanthamma also went into underground life and helped the movement.
In 1952 Comrade T.N. came out of underground life when the Telengana Armed Struggle was withdrawn and contested as a candidate in the 1952 general elections. The Govt. arrested him and released him only after elections.Neelam Sanivareddy was defeated from prison.Nagi Reddy played a key role in the MadraA assembly. As the leader of opposition.In the 1950’s the state of Andhra Pradesh was formed with it’s headquarters at Kurnool.The Congress conspired with other opposition parties against the Communists and were supported by many sections of feudal landlords. In the Puttur constituency, Comrade T.N.heroically resisted these reactionary forcesHe recived graet co-operation from the cadres who spread the politics of Marxism-Leninism.T.N. lost the elections, but continued a series of meetings, exposing the politics of the reactionary parties .This defeat demoralized the Communist Party which now felt the need of tailing behind the bourgeoisie. T he C.P.I began to support Nehru as well as Kruschev’s class –collaborationist line in the Soviet Union. Comrade T.N. combated these consolidating class struggles and people’s movements in Ananthapur district of Andhra Pradesh.In 1957 ,T.N was elected to parliament, which provided him with a platform to study the political, social and economic situation of India. He made a meticulous analysis of how Imperialism controlled India’s economic and industrial spheres, concluding that the Imperialist countries still had affirm grip over India’s economy. The Central leadership of the C.P.I ridiculed this.From 1959-60 Comrade T.N .fought against the expansionist designs of the Nehru Govt and the national chauvinist trend I the C.P.I which rejected friendship between India and China. This resulted in T.N. being arrested under the National Security Act.In 1964 the C.P.M was formed ,on account of differences on the Chinese situation The Government launched strong repression on the C.P.M during the 1964 Indo-Pak war on the border issue and hundreds of leaders and activists were arrested.Trends of National Chauvinsim and trailing the India bourgeoisie came within the C.P.M..Comrade T.N and his followers opposed this from jail itself.The 1967 document upheld in Madurai by the C.P.M.confirmed this.
The Naxalbari peasant movement was initiated from 1967 and Comrade T.N passionately fought against the ruthless repression unleashed on the movement by the United Front Govt.(comprising of the Congress and the C.P.M)He condemned the expulsion of leaders and cadres of the Naxalbari movement from the Party. Comrade T.N. felt that it was the historical task of the comrades to revolt against the central Committee of the C.P.M and the then General secretary of Central Committee,Com.P.Sundarayya.
Comrade T.N.initiated a thorough discussion and debate on the document,”New Situation and new Tasks’, which was circulated before the Madurai document.The avoiding of a discussion by the central committee of the C.P.M wsa condemned .Ina plenum at Palakollu neo-revisionist policies were thoroughly defeated. An overwhelming majority of members voted in support of the resolution proposed by T.N.An Uncompromising stand was made calling on the Naxalbari Movement taking up the path of the Telengana Armed Struggle. T.N.and other leaders were shouldering the responsibility of preparing peole to resist the brutal landlord terror in Srikakulam,Nalgonda,Warangal and Khammam districts. As a member of the legislative assembly ,he exposed the economic condition sof the people.There was a movement in Visakha against a steel plant and brutal repression was unleashed on the people. T.N. submitted his resignation letter to the speaker in Parliament, condemning the repression.In the Telengana districts, Comrade T.N. exposed the attacks of the rural poor I the villages of Maheshwaram,Chandrugonda.Narrakpet,Katsala,Nelamarri,Salipet,Hussenabad,Thonda,Tekulapali,Thimmapet and others. The landlords who were freely using ,lethal weapons against the people were not attacked by the law and were roaming freely.
T.N .played a major role in the Srikakulam Girijan peasnt movement from it’s infant stages to it’s later stages. On countless ocassion when the landlords unleashed terror, he toured the concerned area and stood besides the oppressed people of the area. The Girijan movement had it’s genesis in 1958,formed by the C.P.I and continued toi develop sharp class struggle from 1964 to 31st October 1967.The C.P.M leadership vociferously came down upon he Naxalbari Srikakulam and Telengana Movements and were spectators when landlords launched attacks. In a series of interviews to interviews in Blitz I 15th May1968 and to Swedish journalists on 16th March 1969 he explained the reason sf or the splits in the communist Movement. He said, “If we had been carrying out the working class Struggles in it’s revolutionary form during these 16 years, we could probably have also used parliament, even while an agrarian revolution was going on in some places. We can go in go armed struggle in a relatively large area and still sit in parliament in other areas where no armed struggle was going on.This would combine parliamentary and extra-parliamentary struggle. ”T.N stressed on the need of combining various forms of struggle keeping in view the unevenness in political and economic spheres, consciousness of people and level of movement in India’s vast semi-feudal and semi-colonial country. T.N . continued”We will enter the assemblies to expose them, but not join any coalition govt.”He stressed on the need for building a mass agrarian revolutionary movement and completing the People’s Democratic Revolution.”
In 1969 Comrade T.N resigned from the Assembly making a historic speech. Shortly after T.N.resigned from the assembly, the state plenum of the Andhra Pradesh Communist Revolutionaries was held /A Document titled ‘Immediate Programme ‘was prepared which threw light on the agrarian revolutionary movement.Com T.N organized the landless peasants of 28 villages to occupy the banjar lands which wee in the hands of the landlords for the last 30 years .All the 3000 acres of land were distributed to the landless peasants. On similar lines ,Communist Revolutionaries led movements in Kurnool,West Godavri and East Godavri districts to occupy forest banjars and lands under occupation of landlords.T.N took great pains to defend the importance of building a revolutionary movement in the countryside with the agrarian question being the focal question in a semi-feudal and semi-colonial country. He resolutely defended the programme of Peoples Democratic Revolution and Peoples War.In the course of Struggle Comrade T.N and his comrades were arrested. A conspiracy case was launched on T.N based on the documents of the Atlapragada Plenum I 1969.In Hyderabad a conspiracy case was foisted on him and in court he staunchly defended himself by stating” It is impossible to implement land reform sby democratic methods without an armed revoluton.It is sheer deceit to say that feudalism can be rooted out without giving a call to revolutionary practice. It is inevitable that the masses would overthrow the ruling classes by mean sof class struggle and armed revolution.’In the cross Examination he exposed the landlords, police officers and corrupt elements.It was a virtual repeat of Com Dimitrov in the Reichstag fire case and the Indian Communists in the Kanpur and Meerut Conspiracy cases.In May 1972 T.N was granted bail .The veteran comrade plunged into the movement, opposing the governments policy of suppression against revolutionaries, killings I fake encounters of activists in the Srikakulam movement and illegal detention in concentration camps and emphasized the need of a democratic Rights Movement. He toured the Girijan areas of Srikakulam District with painstaking attention and gave morale support to all oppressed sections. His political campaign boosted the morale of the masses .The civil and democratic rights Movement also gained momentum. Com.T.N professed that all types of forces could be united against oppression on girijan and peasant masses, against encounters and for release of revolutionaries .A campaign for Defence Committee for the accused in the Parvathipuram Conspiracy Case.
Comrade T.N .was the architect of the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India. Meticulously he studied various experiences and analyzed that it was not possible for he revolutionaries to come under a single committee and several problems would arise. In April 1975 the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries was formed. Since his release and during the emergency Comrade T.N worked tirelessly for democratic rights, for legal defence of revolutionaries and rebuilding the movements in the peasants, youth, workers ,literary and cultural fronts and training revolutionary cadres. few months before the imposition of emergency ,he warned in meeting of cadres about the possibility of imposti of emergency and explained people about how to build organizational forms of struggle .He encouraged he cadres to expose the ruling classes through leaflets on every problem and to gain skills to distribute them in any form of repression. The A P State committee made extensive propaganda under his guidance and circulated secret papers.T.N condemned the Congress leaders for their support of Sanjay Gandhi when he toured Andhra Pradesh. He published a leaflet exposing this. During the emergency, the Govt decided to build a heavy engineering plant at Vijayawada and collect levy from peasants and middle class traders for it’s construction .T.N mobilized cadre to oppose these events as it was a part of the move to loot the people in collaboration with Imperialist companies.T.N directed the district organization to take up a programme and the party cadre responded by mobilising the people’s opinion against it.In this period he toured Rajasthan, Punjab and West Bengal analyzing the political and economic situation.
Within a year of it’s formation problems began to occur in the Unity Centre. Those with different political understanding’s and orientations merged so the old understanding’s were reflected and differences arose. Comrade T.N did the utmost to combat this and solve the inner-political isues democratically. One resolution, “One year Emergency and situation” was adopted by the C.C in May 1976 and other decisions on the matters of functioning, the spirit of resolving the problems had emerged.
The contradictions of the ruling classes had reached a bursting point. The J.P. Movement was consolidating itself in all parts of India which affected the stability of the ruling Congress party. Various political groups were mobilized under one political mainstream under the J.P.leadership. Inner cracks were taking place within the ruling Congress party..The Allahabad judgement and the defeat of the Congress in Gujarat seemed to have pushed all the disgruntled groups into one mainstream. The cabinet showed inner cracks.1. The contention between the superpowers was growing. South Asia became the cockpit of struggles between the 2 superpowers. India’s actions in Bangladesh and Sikkim helped the expansionist policies of Soviet expansionism.2. The revisionist parties were supporting every repressive act. (The C.P.I.supported the emergency.) They gave up their programme of land reform. They supported the anti-strike policies of the Congress. The working class was blamed by them for the failure of living upto production targets. They projected themselves as progressives while in reality they supported the states actions trampling peoples civil liberties and democratic rights. In trade Union struggles they supported the management. Parliamentary Congressism without an anti-imperialist ,anti-feudal programme led to sections of Communist revolutionaries into following the revisionists.3. The aid that was being offered by the world bank was causing havoc. particularly in the rural areas. India would now become a greater debtor. The creation of anti -imperialist nationalism on every front was needed .The 20 point programme of the Congress did not have a single imperialist task.4. The landlord classes had greatly strengthened. A lot of the landlord classes had diversified their economy into various other fields such as trade, small factories as rice mills, Groundnut factories, cinema theatres, contractors and so on. In such a situation if their lands are not touched ,then the question of land distribution becomes a farce.Temple lands were the best example of this.These lands were sold in auction -landed property to be turned into monetary property. For the agrarian revolution concretized local slogans had to be given along with general slogans. The reactionary theory of forming land committees must be exposed .This was the equivalent of the landlords being asked to distribute their own lands.5 Every point of the ruling class 20 point progamme should be refuted. The policy of accepting imperialist capital had to be exposed tooth and nail. With increased foreign aid ,the drain on foreign exchange in all dimensional forms -legal and illegal was the fundamental problem. With increased attacks on smugglers the government had liberalised imports on the falicious plea of export promotion.-primarily to finance import of goods which go into current consumption as a price stabilising operation.The tendency of the beneficiaries will be to import items which cater to elitist demand and maximise their profits regardless of the aims of the national economy, thereby liberalizing to an extent legal and semi-legal smuggling in the interests of the organised sector of the economy.. The world bank had been insisting on liberalised imports as an incentive to exports. Illegal smuggling was now replaced by legal smuggling. The world bank had insisted on liberalised imports as an incentive to exports.A massive firing had taken place on so -called corrupt an inefficient officers. The Ayub Khan Govt. which carried this out was a most corrupt regime. He carried out actions to divert the people. The manipulations of multi-national companies was a great example of corruption which in India had reached in every strata of society from the administrative machinery to the lowest level village cadre.A new cadre of corrupt backward caste youth was created. This corruption would be a great obstacle to the movement. This feature should be studied from the village level. 6.There was great singleness of purpose in the U.C.C.R.I.The adventurism of Charu Mazumdar,the disruptionist of the Chandra Pulla Reddy group,and the class-collaborationist policies of the Jayaprakash group was consistently refuted. The recognition of Charu Mazumdars C.P.I.M.L.by China caused problems initially but that problem had been overcome. Nagi Reddy 's contribution to the formulation, development and defence of the communist revolutionary line are invaluable in an era where pragmatism in political conduct and cynicism in attitude are affecting the rank and file of revolutionary groups. Comrade T.N always had an integral political -ideological concept and excelled in practicing it.A revolutionary journal evaluating his contribution stated, 'In analysing any political development or situation, sticking to the standpoint of Marxism-Leninism, proceeding from the current development of and interrelation between fundamental contradictions, ascertaining the particular form of conduct of different political forces in relation to them, ascertaining the actual state of affairs of the revolutionary forces and working out not only practical tasks but also the concrete form of revolutionary activity in relation with them.,all this he did in a manner that not only corresponded to the long-term interests of the revolution but was identifiable with the long-term interests of the movement and it's strategic goal.'Comrade T.N’s restless work culminated in heavy fear and vomiting that started on July 17th with routine treatment. However it recurred and all efforts to save him were in vein. On 28th July 1976 Comrade T.N. breathed his last in the early hours of the day.
The body was handed over by the hospital authorities at 9 a .m. It was taken to the house of his beloved sister Mrs Rama.While she was taking the body in her car to Tarimela, the police stopped the car at Kalluru and arrested the body of T.N.thousands of people thronged to see his body and the last glimpse o their departed leader. The police thwarted all mobs and handed the body over to the relatives .Thousands of people followed his body from Ananthapur.Comrade T.N was an uncompromising crusader against revisionism and as well as right and left opportunism fought against the personality cult and personal vilifications and mantained discipline, sacrifice, responsibility ,patience, courage and humility throughout his life.
The virtues of Comrade T.N belonged to future generations of revolutionaries who inherited his legacy. The great Comrade Tarimala Nagi Reddy made a historic contribution by demarcating from the wrong trends and till today has made the greatest contribution towards the building of the mass proletarian revolutionary theory and mass revolutionary practice and is the revolutionary the author most admires to date in India in his contribution to Indian Revolution.(By any Comrade since the 1946-1951 Telengana Armed Struggle)His method of work reminded the author of the painstaking efforts made by Comrades of the Chinese Communist Party to develop work in the masses. However Only after the proleterian party has been re-organised,mass protracted peoples War started or the revolution completed can Nagi Reddy’s true contribution be judged. The other important factor is whether he adopted the correct Unity approach with other revolutionary Sections, particularly those who struggled for the mass line within the Charu Mazumdar C.P.I.M.L .
Comrade Tarimala Nagi Reddy to this day has made the most significant contribution ever to the cause of India Revolution from the Naxalbari era. From the Naxalbari period he is the founder of the road to achieving the mass revolutionary line.He wrote a glorious chapter in the Communist Movement.Quoting this great Comrade, “It is no wonder that after 25 years of th so called Independence that I have been arrested under an act promulagated in the year 1860-more than 100 years ago. How and why did it happen? that the so-called non –violent revolution led by the Indian National Congress under the direct management of the Mahatama capitulated India not into a living epoch of progress but into a dead epoc of stagnation with all the old laws old henchmen and names. Whatevever the outward changes in political control nothing essential has changed in our social set up. Imperialist Exploitation, and feudal Exploitation and violence in the rural area has reached a new intensity..Is it not fantastic that me and my colleagues are being charged with conspiracy to change this demeaning state of affairs? Is it not fantastic that those who have sold the countrys’ resources lock stock and barrel for ten sofyears to come to foreign financial interests charge us as traitors? Any citizen with a grain of patriotism in him, should by nature revolt against sucha degrading state of affairs to ressurect the great glory of the Indian People and the Nation.””We are in the period of Revoluttionary Upheavals in India.On the basis of Mao Tse Tung Thought, on the guidelines of the peoples war,the revolutionary spark from Naxalbari spread fast and wide and engulfed area of Srikakulam, Khammam,Warangal and East Godavari. The masses were roused for land in Ananthapur and Kurnool.Apart from the vast armed struggles of Parvathipuram,and parts of Khammam and Warangal in Andhra ,there have been peasant armed struggles in areas in Bihar and West Bengal. Vast Revolutionary Experiences have been gathered.The purposeful great debate amongst the revolutionaries for the principled evaluation of successes and failures, on the basis of experiences of revolutions te world over and on the basis of our own struggles will certainly unite the revolutionary forces in the long run.India is a vast continent of various nationalities Objective and subjective conditions are not the same all over the Country.With flexible tactics and adoption of various formsof Struggles,with the peasant armed revolution as the main struggle I am confident that the Indian Peoples Democratic Revolution is on the Road to success.”
3..Struggle against revisionism and wrong trends and Struggle for revolutionary mass line
The turning point I Andhra Pradesh was the rejection of the C.P.M’s central committee ideological draft by a majority vote. The Communist Revolutionaries organized the ideological debate utilisng certain advantageous conditions. The State plenum adopted a detailed resolution with 158/231 supporting it.Comrade T.N and Chandra Pulla Reddy were the architects of the resolution.Thhe C.P.M leadership earlier evaded the ideological debate in 1964 at the same time there were various points of view reflected in the 1964 Calcutta Congress.In June 1966 they presented a note to the C.C but later discouraged this by allowing the state committees to publish only’the authoritative pronouncements of fraternal parties./’The 1967 documents of the C.P.M adopted neo-revisionist postions.The C.R’s of A.P. organized themselves into a secret organization by March 1968.Thhey organized similar committees below. Which conducted the anti neo-revisionst struggle,o rganizationally consolidating the forces that rallied with the revolutionary politics and guiding the peoples movement with the aim of revolution.However the internal struggle against neo revisionism at the all –India level lacked any co-ordination and centralized leadership. There were several different types of approaches.
On November 13th 1967,under the leadership of Comrade Charu Mazumdar the All India Co-ordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries of India was formed.They professeda.develop and co-ordinate militant struggles at all levels ,especially peasant struggles.of Naxalbari Typeb.develop militant struggles of the working classc.wage ideological struggle against revisionism and popularize Mao Tes Tung Thought.d.To develop a revolutionary programme.ona correct tactical line.
On May 14th 1968 the A.I.C.C.R came out with a declaration claiming that all those revolutionaries still in the C.P.M must be disqualified from consideration, and all those who still think there is scope for inter-party struggle must be condemned. Interestingly the organ Liberation refuted this stating that avenues had to be allowed for differences and that it was premature to rule out such comrades .Interestingly, although from the beginning ,the AI.C.C.R.leadership showed trends of left adventurism,the Andhra Comrades under the banner of the Andhra Pradesh Co-ordination Committee met them and even joined them.This took place in November 1968.Earlier in June 1968 the CR’s of A.P formally broke away.comrade T.N was the convenor.In August of that year the A.I C.C R had formed a Naxalbari Solidarity Committee and wee carrying a slanderous campaign against the A.P.C.C.C.R.,propogating that the Andhra Comrades were revisionsists.
In the final analysis 3 major differences came out.
a.the left adventurist A.I.C.C.R. line viewed the struggle against neo revisionism as a task of only organizing the top leaders or the most advanced elements of the C.P.M.The A.P.C.C.C.R felt thee was need of organizing the entire party ranks.
b.The A.I.C.C.C.R negated the mass line and exhibited romantic and petit bourgeois tendencies when they propogated armed struggle with no relation to the people’s consciousness.The concept of ‘annihilation of the class enemies’ was propogated.The A.P.C.C.C.R stressed that a mass agrarian revolutionary Movement should be built up propagating the concept of agrarian revolution and relating it to the land question. They also stressed on implementing the mass revolutionary line of the Telengana Armed Struggle. It also questioned AI.C.C.C.R’s understanding of the area of Srikakulam becoming a liberated base area. Encircled by a well –knit transport and communication system thee was a long way to develop it into a liberated base area. Simultaneously they propagated that there were vast potential areas where armed struggle could be developed. and a strategic planning was required.
c. A.P.C.C.C.R propagated the need of building necessary forms of struggle and organization.and the need to combine mass form sof struggle with armed struggle.The A.I.C.C.C.R.totally neglected this aspect.
d. A.P.C.C.C.R opposed the line of ‘Boycott of parliamentary Elections’ as a strategic path.’ Elections was a question of tactics and one of the several llegal forms of struggle. In an Interview with Blitz Comrade T.N stated ‘Revolutionaries take part in the elections and legislative bodies to expose their fraudulent character and convince the masses of the revolutionary path.T.N told Swedish Journalists ‘WE can go in for armed struggle in a really a large area and still sit in parliament in other areas when armed struggle is not going on’. Comrade T.N went on to make a most significant statement in an interview with Swedish Journalists: The difficulties are of course our own mistakes during the last 16 years, which have naturally led to condition of disorganization. To be frank we are not organized in the way we ought to be if we are to function in a revolutionary way. We have created an illusion among the people about parliamentary action, organized the communist party’s machinery in a parliamentary way . The old unselfish tendency has gone to waste ,the old hard work has vanished. We must re-build.T hat is the greatest difficulty.” If we had been carrying on the working class Struggles in the revolutionary way during these 16 years ,we could probably also have used the parliament, ven if agrarian revolution was taking place in other areas. India has many different organizational revolutionary requirements. As for the future we must wait and see how things develop, how successful is our organisation’s work and how effective is the co-ordination of all these struggles. Then we must consider the various tactical possibilities open to us.After the break fro the C.P.M. the A.P.C.C.R sent cadre and leadership to the forest area of Andhra Pradesh in Khammam, Warangal, Karimnagar, and East Godavri districts. Although people were being organized in mass struggles on economic demands in Khammam, Warangal and Karimnagar areas,in other areas activity was still at the level of propoganda.In Eat Godavri area particularly god work was done. However ,overall,there was a long tortuous road ahead in developing a consistent and extensive agrarian revolutionary Movement.The Andhra Pradesh Communist Revolutionaries stood in the forefront of combating left opportunism. These were the main differences between them and the Srikakula District Committee(D.C.) which follwed Charu Mazumdar and the A.I.C.C.C.R.a. The first one was over the question of carrying out armed struggle with relation to land.The district Committee believed that mass land struggle was not needed .
b. Secondly the D.C belived that actions of armed squads would mobilize the broad masses.c .Thirdly,the D.C rejected the idea of of advanced training in guerilla war and proposed that in he course of battle all warfare would be learnt.
d.Fourthly the D.C believed that only armed struggle was necessary.
Comrade T.N in an interview explained 3 important points
a..That Armed Struggle starts only as resistance to landlord goondas and govt.repression This resistance will be in the form of peoples mass resistance. However the C.P.I.M.L rejected this and resorted to isolated squad actions.
b.In T.N’s view Peoples War starts only as a form of resistance ,not as an offensiveTHe C.P.I.M.L opposed this .
c. Comrade T.N advocated the use of various forms of struggle in accordance with the prevailing conditions.The C.P.I.M.L rejected this and only gave emphasis to armed struggle.
By 1969 an agrarian revolutionary movement had developed ina small pocket of Kondamodalu agency area of East Godavri District under the leadership of the A.P.C.C.R.T he vast masses of the Girijans were drawn with the perspective of the mass revolutionary line. Comrades made a systematic study of the condition’s of people’s life and the forms of exploitation and oppression Extensive political propaganda was carried out against the moneylenders,forest officials,forest contractors,landlords and officials. People were organized on the basis of partial issues. To land issues. People were organized into various organizations like the girijan Sangham, Mahila Sangham, youth Organisation Etc. Earlier Comrade Chandra Pulla Reddy had insisted on armed struggle for self-defence and disagreed with Comrades T.N and D.V.He felt that the enemy would not be quiet until the people consciously realize the need of adopting he form of armed struggle.’ Armed Struggle for self-defence can be started by armed squads only formed by the party cadre .He formulated that’The peasant masses could only come forward to seize thel and of the landlords after they gain the confidence in the military strength of the armed squads. Subsequently Chandra Pulla Reddy left the AP.Committee and formed his own group.the A.P.C.C.R.was now under the leadership of Comrade T.N and Comrade D.V.(Devullapali Venkateshwara Rao)
Nagi Reddy’ s line was followed in Punjab by the Ferozepur Bhatinda Committee led by Comrade Harbhajan Sohi that revived the mass organisation the Punjab Students Union and built the Naujavan Bharat Sabha ,a popular Youth Organisation.These organizations represented the broad masses of Punjab .The famous Moga Sangram Rally constituting the Naujavan Bharat Sabha,the Punjab Students Union, the Mould and Steel Workers Union and the Wahikar Union was led by the Punjab C-ordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries.(P.C.R.C) On October 22nd 1974.An armed demonstarion of 20,000 people took place. It is of significance that Comrade Harbhajan Sohi was earlier a member of the C.P.I.M.L led by Comrade Charu Mazumdar.In 1974 the Punjab Co-Ordination committee brought out a significant document stating.1. .Since the socio-economic conditions differ and political consciousness varies from place to place the revolutionary movements have to pass through various stages and different tactics would have to be used at various places2.To ignore open and legal struggles is left adventurism.These will contribute to the development of armed struggle.3.Annihilation of class enemies leads to the emergence of feelings of hero worship and retardr revolutionary initiative.4.To ignore partial and economic struggles is dogmatism.The working class will have to pass through various stages.
Naxalbari Struggle-genesis and post-Naxalbari analysis.
In 1967 a historic peasant Struggle took place on Maoist Lines. This was known as the Naxalbari armed Struggle. It had it’s origin in the Struggle of Tea Plantation Workers in Siliguri in West Bengal.In 1964 the Communist Party of India Split and the Communist Party of India Marxist was Formed. However within the party a set of Comrades upheld the Cultural Revolution in China and opposed parliamentarism of their leadership group called the All India Co-Ordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries was formed led by Comrade Charu Mazumdar was formed.An Organ liberation was brought out and the body discussed how to link revolutionary peasant Struggles.Marxism-Leninism Mao Tse Tung Thought was upheld as the Marxisnm Leninism of the Era.A resolution was made advocating the building of armed Struggle all over the Country.In The Co-Ordination Committee however a powerful tendency developed to behave in a big brotherly fashion to other Comrades. The A.I.C.C.R ordered all the comrades of the Communist Party of India Marxist to join them.It acted like an all India Party. Various Comrades all around the Country were demarcating from the Communist Party of India Marxist but had not formally broken away. They were still the equivalent of an embryo in a mother’s stomach and prematurely were told to quit the party. In June 1968 finally the Comrades of the Andhra Pradesh Communist Party of India Marxist left the Party to form the Andhra Pradesh Co-ordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries.Tarimal Nagi Reddy was made the Convenor .In 1968 November they joined the A.I.C.C.C.R.however shortly later a conflict arose between the A.I.C.C.R and the Andhra Pradesh Co-ordination Committee.The A.I.C.C.R propagated that the Andhra Committee Comrades were revisionists and opposed Armed Struggle.In the Srikakulam region they even directly called for arned actions and recruited comrades without cosulting the Andhra State Committee.(Taken from Indian Revolutionary Movemnt”Some Lessons and Experience”)Ultimately the A.I.C.CR.expelled the A.P.C.C.R from the Party.The reasons were on difference to 3 major Questions.1.) The role of the Chinese Party.The A.I.C.C.R felt that the Chinese party was the absolute leader and called Mao the Chairman of the Indian party.They used the phrase, “China’s Chairman is our Chairman”2.) That the Andhra Committee Comrades were making no attempts to intensify the peasant Struggle in the Srikakulam Region of Andhra Pradesh.3.) . On the Question of Elections. The A.I.C.C.R felt that the path of active Boycott was a strategic path for the Indian Revolution and opposed the use of participation of parliamentary Elections as a tactical mean throughout the revolutionary period. They opposed the Andhra Committee Comrades who stated that in appropriate Situations as an extra-parliamentary tactic participation in the Election could be deployed as a tactic.Comrade Nagi Reddy was condemned for not resigning from the State Assembly.4The Charu Mazumdar C.P.I.M.L considered the whole section of the bourgeoise as Comprador by natute and failed to recognise the progressive nature of the national bourgeoisie who can be part of the united Front against the Enemy like In China before the Revolutin i 1949.Several Armed actions were advocated by the A.I.C.CR with no relationship to the level of the Peoples movement.Charu Mazumdar advocated the line of, “Individual Annihilation of the Class Enemy”.A major 2 line Struggle took place within the A.I.C.CR and the Andhra Pradesh Committee Comrades led by Devullapali Venkateshwara Rao and Tarimala Nagi Reddy.Comrade D.V believed that elections could never be used as a tactic unlike Comrade Nagi Reddy.The A.I.C.C.R comrades claimed that Srikakulam was already a liberated base area. Naxalbari was a mass based peasant Struggle where in the village of Naxalbari the peasant`s seized land from the Jotedars.(Landlords) Unfortunately due to Charu Mazumdar`s line of abandoning mass organization and carrying out Individual Annihilation of class Enemies the movement degenerated into one of armed Squad Actions isolated from the People`s movements.Their understanding of Mao’s theory of protracted Peoples war was distorted. Comrade Charu Mazumdar called for the abandonment of trade Unions and mass organizations. Instead of applying the revolutionary mass line and developing mass revolutionary Struggles individual terrorist Armed action s replaced them. Armed Squads killed landlords and attacked police Stations without the mass support of the broad masses.They were popular amongst the peasant masses but prevented the broad masses from building their own institutions or revolutionary democratic power. In the Chinese revolutionary Armed Struggle Armed squads supplemented the mass movements of people and did not substitute them.On April22nd 1969 Charu Mazumdar formed the Communist Party of India Marxist Leninist. Today historically major quarters of the Indian Revolutionary Camp uphold it but it is a debatable question whether the formation of the party should have been deferred.Some Intellectuals like Manoranjan Mohanty or Sumanta Banerjee upheld the formation. However others like Mohan Ram opposed it saying that the Party was imposed from above and not formed from below./Apart from the Andhra Pradesh Comrades a formation called the Dakshin Desh Group opertating in Begal and Bihar opposed the formation of the Party. They believed that base areas had not been sufficiently developed. In their view class struggle had not been sufficiently developed and that overemphasis was given to military armed actions. However they felt that th the individual annihilation of class enemy could be used as a tactic. This organization went on to call itself the Maoist Communist Centre.It is significant that Comrdae Soren Bose,a central Committee member of the Charu Mazumdar C.P.I.M.L visted China in 1970 and met Premier Chou En-Lai.The Premier himself stated that the policies of Annihilation were wrong and it was wrong to copy the Chinese Experience in toto.and call Chairman Mao Chairman of India’s party. Comrade Chou elaborated how the C.C.P combated left adventurism. He also stated that it was wrong to call the whole class of the bourgeoisie as comprador as the National bourgeoisie can be an ally.Historically the Charu Mazumdar line failed.Charu was tortured to death by the Indian State on July 28th 1972.By 1975 his movement was totally defeated. Thousands of cadres were killed in false encounters or thrown into jail. There were various splits within the Charu Mazumdar C.PI.M.L.One was because of the Mahadev Mukherjee faction which upheld Lin Biao the leader who attemped to assassinate Mao. Historically later some revolutionary quarters held Lin Biao responsible for the annihilation line. Lin had advocated that it was the era of “Total collapse of Imperialism and victory of Peoples War”.One theory is that it was Lin Biaoism which led to Charu’s line of secreat assassination and abandonment of mass organizations and mass struggle.In Punjab the group that followed the Charu Mazumdar line made a self criticism and formed the Central Organising Committee of C.P.I.M.L.This Group was led by Jagjit Singh Johal In Punjab hundreds of Naxalite supporters were killed in false encounters or thrown into jail and tortured.
.Unlike all these groups the Vinod Mishra led C.P.I.M.L group, which originated from the Bhojpur movement. in 1982 called for using parliamentary means of revolutionary struggle and formed the Indian Peoples Fron.He advocated armed struggle but believed that a mass revolutionary parliamentary forum could be a major belt to building a revolutionary mass movement.In 1979 the Kerala Comrades who were the followers of the Charu Mazumdar line but did not join the party formed the Central Re-Organisation Committee of the C.P.I.M.L.they also rectified the earlier line ..
4.Formation of U.C.C.R.I.M.L
The A.P.C.C.R made protracted efforts to tread the mass line. While in jail, the leadership concentrated on political and ideological work and wrote documents in criticism of revisionism, left opportunism, left devation within the Party’Right Opportunist trend within the party’ and Fundamental Line and question of Unity” Efforts were made to initiate the mass line and a paper” Proletarian Path’ was brought out together with Comrades from West Bengal.The Andhra Comrades developed relationships with the Srikakulam Comrades (inside jail).A series of steps was planned to develop political and organizational unity.Relations were established with Comrades like Kanu Sanyal and Souren Bose..Talks took place with Comrade Satya Narayan Singh but in no time the Andhra Comrades rejected merging with his organization. The A.P.C.C.C.R preapared draft Programme Path and Constitution for Unity Talks.There were only 4 organisations in the Unity Conference. They were A.P.C.C.R, West Bengal Coordination Committee, North Zone Committee and West Begal Communist Unnity Centre.
In April 1975the birth of the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India took place. It was inaugurated by Comrade D.V Rao. The unity conference adopted a resolution on martyrs, programme, path, method of work, constitution and a statement on unification. The unity conference elected a Central Committee with Devullapali Venkateswara Rao (DV) as its secretary. UCCRI(ML) had as its ambition to unite all communist revolutionarty forces, including people within the CPI(ML) fold. UCCRI(ML) started publishing the SPARK as its central organ..There was a decision on behalf of the Kerala Communist Unity Centre to merge with UCCRI(ML) in June 1975, but that organization suffered interal splits and the merged was cancelled. In July 1976 T. Nagi Reddy, who had been the most important leader of the party, died. His death became a severe set-back for UCCRI(ML).
In August 1976 the same year the organization suffered a split. A conflict had emerged in the CC, and DV had been removed from the post of secretary. DV accused three other CC members (led by a CC member from the NZC) of having formed a "rival centre", and suspended them unilaterally. In the split the Northern Zone Committee (i.e. Rajasthan) and Bengal Committee had broken away, along with the "rival centre". The break-away group later developed a pro-Albanian line.DV returned to Andhra Pradesh and rallied the Andhra organization around him. DV pushed through a merger of the Punjab Communist Revolutionary Committee with the UCCRI(ML) in June 1976. He resurrected a Central Committee including himself, the PCRC secretary (Harbhajan Sohi) and two leaders from Andhra (Madhu and Anand), which was to function until a regular conference would be held.
5.Organisational Decelopments within the U C C R I M.L in the post Nagi Reddy phase.
UCCRI(ML) of DV later evaluted the split in the following way; "From whatever the discussion that had taken place, we can draw some conclusions.1. Excepting on two issues, there reflected no divergencies in the CC on political positions adopted by Com. DV in the course of whole development.2. Com. DV viewed the whole course of development like this: The NZC and its allies did not accept the line with convictions and genuinity. This was the basic cause for the split. They were manipulators, careerists and doubtful elements. They were incorrigible. Hence the split was unaviodable sooner or later. ..." (Indian Revolutionary Movement: Some Lessons and Experiences. Red Flag Publications, 1989: Vijayawada)In 1977 a section of U.C.C.R.I.(M.L)Left the organization led by Ramalinachari to from the Branches were started in Orissa and Kerala. In 1978 a group from the Debra area of Midnapore, West Bengal joined UCCRI(ML) after some rounds of discussions with the CC. The convenor of the erstwhile Maharashtra State Committee of Communist Revolutionaries (which had left AICCCR after the expulsion of APCCCR) joined UCCRI(ML), leading to the formation of a unit in Maharashtra.UCCRI(ML) split for the second time in September 1979 when the Punjab committee, under the leadership of Harbhajan Sohi, broke away. HBS had developed a criticism of Mao's Three Worlds Theory. DV, on the other hand, defended the Three Worlds Theory and the new leadership of the Communist Party of China. The Punjab committee came to establish a parallel UCCRI(ML).Ahead of the 1980 elections, UCCRI(ML) reviewed their stand towards participation. UCCRI(ML) always saw the issue of elections as a tactical issue. Initially the party had taken the policy of non-participation. But in 1980 UCCRI(ML) came out with an appeal to "defeat pro-super power reactionary forces in elections". An article written by DV in the January 1980 issue of Proletarian Line (the central organ of UCCRI(ML) at the time) proposed the following; "We have been treating and are treating the participation or boycott ... as a form of struggle and our practice is the sameRevolutionary Organising Centre.(R.O.C.)We do not think that "boycott" can be the slogan of present day ..... In the same way it is too premature to think of candidates in the prevailing situation in which the defective nature of electoral system is one. In these conditions our participation will be one of taking measures to advance the revolutionary movement by utilizing this opportunity. The people are being mobilised to see the real face of contesting parties who have not been serving them in any way what so ever.Keeping all the points in view, we appeal to the people to defeat the game of the two super powers in general and Soviet Union in particular. We appeal to people to defeat the game of landlords who are trying to survive by diverting the agrarian revolutionary movement. Almost all the election parties are connected with these forces in one way or the other."The article continues; "Since pro-super power and reactionary forces in general and pro-Soviet forces in particular pose the main danger to our country we will mobilse all those forces who are opposed to them and see that they are strengthened so that they are able to defeat them as far as possible. In this connection, we ask the people to differentiate between genuine and fake anti-Soviet, democratic forces."In the actual electoral campaign, however, the new policy was not consistent. In Andhra Pradesh the party promoted non-participation, in reality a boycott, whereas the party supported certain candidates in West Bengal and Orissa.In the aftermath of the elections, a split surged with DV leaving the party with a group of followers in Andhra. DV set up his own UCCRI(ML). After DVs departure, Anand became the new CCSecretary of the remaining UCCRI(ML).now called the Muktigami Group.In 1988 Anand broke away from UCCRI(ML) Muktigami Group after a long period of dissent in the organization. The rift between Anand and other surged in the preparations to hold a party conference. Anand was able to win over the Maharashtra unit. Anand also reopened relations with Sohi's UCCRI(ML). After the split, the faction of Anand together with Sohis faction created the Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India together with three other groups the same year.The remaining UCCRI(ML) faction, namely the Muktigami Group led by Viswam and Madhu, merged into the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Janashakti in 1992. Madhu signed the merger agreement on behalf of UCCRI(MLCentre of Communist Revolutionaries of India was formed in 1988 through the merger of the Anand and Harbhajan Sohi factions of UCCRI(ML), the R.O.C led by Chandrashekar, Revolutionary Communist Party(Takra Group) and Organizing Committee, CPI(ML). The initiative was taken by the two UCCRI(ML) splinter groups,in particular by the U.C.C.R.I.M.L led by Anand.In August 1994 CCRI merged together with the CPI(ML) Central Team, Communist Unity Centre of India and Marxist-Leninist Organising Centre to form the Communist Party Reorganization Centre of India (Marxist-Leninist).
6.. Struggles and development in the Post Tarimala Nagi Reddy era of U.C.C.R.I.(M.L)
In West Bengal under Comrade Gunadhar Murmu peasant struggles were organized on the Nagi Reddy line and attempts were made to re-organise the peasant associations that had been earlier disbanded as a result of Charu Mazumdar’s left adventurist policies.(Infact the Debra Comrades were the first to launch 2 line struggle agansit Left Adventurism in Bengal)In the late 1970’s different trends arose within the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India.In Rajasthan peasant Stuggles were developed in areas..The impact of the Nagi Reddy line was felt in Andhra Pradesh when a struggle oriented Democratic Righrs Organisation,the Organisation for Protection for Democratic Rigts was formed in 1975 .This upheld the practice that Democratic Rights Organsiations must uphold the right to struggle against Economic opression as a Fundamental Right and also identify with thre class struggles of te toiling people.A major Cultural Organisation the Peoples Literary and Cultural Federation was built which fought against the trend of imposing the ideology of Mao Tse Tung Thought in a democratic mass organization.Significant Cultural programmes were done giving solidarity to rural and urban movements.A big democratic Rights Organisation was formed. In Punjab following the line of the Tarimal Nagi Reddy (Only after the death of Nagi Reddy did the Punjab Co-ordination Committee led by Harbhajan Sohi join the Unity Centre of Commuist Revolutionaries of India)a struggle developed led by the Punjab Students Union implementing the ‘mass revolutionary line’ of Tarimala Nagi Reddy (as claimed by the Punjab State Committee) in contrast to the other forces. On July 17th 1979 Prithipal Singh Randhawa(25th death anniversary year of martyrdom on July 18th 1979),the leader of Punjab Students Union was murdered. A major armed protest struggle was developed all over the state involving 20,000 People. After Mao’s death in 1976 a 2 line struggle emerged in China where Mao’s line was defeated .Revolutionary Groups began to support Hua Gufeng and attributed the Dengist theory of 3 worlds to Comrade Mao.One Comrade from the Punjab Section of the Organisation opposed the three worlds theory Undemocratically Comrade D.V attempted to impose the theory on members of the organisation without democratic reference or consultation.(Report of U.C.C.R.I section led by Harbhajan Sohi) However in 1979 a split took place in the Organisation on account of disagreeing with the Dengist 3 Worlds theory.This was led by Comrade Harbhajan Sohi.
The Punjab State committee has earlier brought out a historic document on the essential difference between the mass organization and the party based on the Tarimala Nagi Reddy Line.The Document briefly stated, “The party must work as secret fractions within mass organisations. The secret party fractions are the main link connecting secret political work with the open mass work of the party. They must function democratically within them. They must not be turned into front organisations.The party must introduce politics compatible with the general understanding of the members of a mass organisation.It must not impose it’s politics. The party has to adapt their politics to the idiom and manifesto of the concerned mass organisation.The manner of introducing the politics should be one of concretely relating them to the life experiences and struggles of the people. The manner of formulating the demands and slogans should be such that the masses are objectively pitted, in due course against the reactionary system. There must be active involvement of the mass activists and people in making decisions. Only when the leadership or mass sections accept the party politics can a mass organisation function as a front organisation.”It must be stated that Comrade Harbhajan Sohi,who led the Punjab Group , in the view of the author in the post- Nagi Reddy days has made the greatest contribution in developing the proletarian revolutionary theory in India.(Information from appendix of Documents of the U.C.C.R.I.M.L. In 1977 and documents of 1979 Draft Programme )Comrade Harbhajan has to date made the greatest contribution in developing the correct International line whereby he rejected the principal Opportunist trends like Deng’s 3 Worlds theory. However it is questionable whether the mass line was correctly implemented by the organization led by Harbhajan as another split took place shortly after the 1979 split(From D.V.Rao section) within Punjab.Between 1979 and the time of forming the anti communal Front in November 1986 there was little progress in Punjab in the development of the revolutionary peasant Front and the student and youth front which was so strong in the mid and late1970s.The trade Union movement was relatively weak too. Another factor to be taken into account was that because of a weak Communist Revolutionary led Democratic Movement the Communal Khalistani politics got predominance in Punjab.It must however be stated that with the C.P.I.M.L Central Team Group and the Revolutionary Communist Party of India(Takra Group) the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries section led by Comrade H.B.S was the architect of the the “Front against Repression and Communalism’ formed in Punjab in November 1986 to combat the Khalistani and State terrorism. In Andhra Pradesh in the early 1980’s a group led by D.V Rao split from the Manam Rama Rao led original U.C.C.R.I.M.L called D.V’S group.It is debatable whether it was correct of Comrdae Harbhajan Sohi to split the U.C.C.RI.M.L ,but the International line of the leadership was most defective and the correct mass line of later movement in Punjab may never have taken place without spilt.However it divided the movement at an All India level.The major question was whether conditions for carrying out armed struggle existed within the Movement.
7.Formation of Centre for Communist Revolutionaries of India-1988
The formation of the Centre of Comunist Revolutionaries of India had historical significance,as since the formation of U.C.C.R.I.M.L in 1975 there were so may splits. Theoretically, t was the soundest amongst all revolutionary sections and it’s practice in Orissa and Punjab Outstanding. It enhanced the consolidation of the All India revolutionary Movement.A 2 line struggle was undertaken by comrade Anand within the U.C.C.R.I.M.L of Manam Rama Rao,on similar grounds that Comrada H.B S split the organization.The chief architects of this organization were the 2 Comrades Anand and Harbhajan Sohi.Although Comrade Anand(from Andhra Pradesh) remained in the Muktigami period for long time(even after the H.B.S split in 1979) in the author’s opinion the revolutionary Movement has to be sympathetic with his long struggle as he remained within the original organsation with the interests of Unity in mind.One was the issue of the Chinese three Worlds theory, the other was on the question of electins and massOrganisations.There were strong tendencies in Anand’s view of right deviation-like participation in election s or supporting candidates and impostion of the party’s policies on mass organsiations.5 organisations after a continuos process of bilateral negotiations united.The 1977 Appendix documents written by Harbhajan Sohi were taken as the Organisation’s internatinal line.This organization made a major contribution in the revolutionary democratic movement in the Khalistani period with the Central Team of the C.P.I.M.L and developed cores of mass revolutionary resistance against the Khalistani Terrorism. Major mass resistance rallies were led by a mass resistance front formed by them at Moga in 1987 and at Sewawla in 1991 and 1992.Since the Telengana Armed Struggle or Naxalabri and Srikakulam Movement there was no better exhibition of implementing the mass line against an enemy force.True they were unable to work in all districts of Puinjab(Their Front functioned principally in Ludhiana ,Faridkotand Bhatinda districts and was inactive in many districts)) and and a revolutionary peasant movement had not been built statewide but their experience was a heroic lesson.It also played a major role in the building of mass agarian revolutionary line of the Adivasi movement in Malkangiri in Orissa.In Andhra Pradesh it’s forces attempted to consolidate the Srikakulam Girijan movement ’The most significant contribution of this organization was the theoretical and practical correctness on the relationship of mass organizations with the Party.It stressed on the Party functioning democratically within the mass organizations and helping them develop their democratic identity.One major theoretical development was the stand on elections where they explained how conditions were not accessible for carrying out tactics of ‘active boycot’t or participation in Parliamentary elections.There were also units in Rajasthan and Maharashtra where Trade Union and Democratic Rights work was consolidatedand efforts made to have corrct mass approach on trade Union Front.In West Bengal trade Union movement was consolidated and major trade Union struggles were led capturing the Unions.It also had revolutionary peasant Movement work in Bihar which later was absorbed by the Party Unity Section.For some time some struggles carrying the torch of the mass line were implemented ,particulary against the Bhagalpur riots in 1989.In the author’s view inspite of such a theoretically strong line was unable to inspire an Effective All-India Campaign to expose the fact that it was revisionism that had collapsed in 1989 and not Socialism.A sustained campaign as a mass political level should have been oragnised to defend Mao Tse Tung Thought and Socialism. Also perhaps not sufficiently consolidated the mass agrarian revolutionary line at an all-India level. It is debatable wheter it was premature to carry out an armed struggle in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar in certain regions considering strength of peasnt movement.(It had an organsiation in Bihar that time which later disaffiliated itself).
8.Formation of the C.P.I.M.L Janashakti-1992
The Janasahakti Group was formed in 1992 by the merger of the Ramchandran Group,the Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India (Muktigami group),the Pyla Vasudeva Group the West Bengal Co-ordination committee led by Parimal Dasgupta,the CP.I.M.L led by Konkan Mazumdar.It was a most opportunist Unity. Without resolving major issues for uniting they merged into a single organization. Suddenly they said that the formation of the Charu Mazumdar C.P.I.ML was correct and at the same time upheld the lines of T.Nagi Reddy and Chandra Pulla Reddy!In no time this group split into 5 different Organisations.The organization although having armed squads in many areas came out openly and disturbed the mass movement.(Like in Punjab)In Andhra Pradesh they held a joint all India Peasant Conference against Imperialist dictates of the I.M.F .In the trade Union Movement they led struggles but exhibited powerful economist tendencies. In the opinion of the author the organization today has it’s major sections in the revisionist camps ,while has a small section in the Northern parts, which sides with the C.P.I.Maoist and may possibly merge with them. (Signed a joint statement on boycott of elections with C.P.I.Maoist as well as on anti repressionand anti-communal issues)As a result of disunity and theoretical weakness is no more a serious revolutionary force.It still has several revolutionary cadres and the Rajanna faction in Andhra Pradesh is still a militant one.,carrying armed struggle at a marginal level.9DExistence even today of the D.V. led U.C.C.R.I.(M.L)-Proletarian Line Group-formed in 1980Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India (Marxist-Leninist) is a political party in Andhra Pradesh, India. It was formed by D.V. Rao after the 1980 general elections, as a split from the original Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India (Marxist-Leninist). D.V. Rao had been the Central Committee Secretary of UCCRI(ML). However, differences had emerged on issues like how to relate to developments in China after the death of Mao Zedong. D.V. Rao maintained that China under Deng Xiaoping remained a socialist state.They still bring out an organ called the ‘Proletarian Path’Every year they hold commemoration meetings in July upholding Comrades T.N.and D.V. Although they term the Janashakti and C.P.I.(Maoist)as adventurist and opportunist. ,this organisation participates in Elections ina substantial way.They had one section of the Student organisation, Democratic Students Organsiation under their influece and a section of Organisation For Protection of Democratic Rights.I rate them as Revisionist today.Today the party is led by Arika Gumpaswamy.

By QurbaniFormation of C.P.R.C.I.(M.L)
A New Marxist Leninist Revolutionary Centre, the Communist Party Re-Organisation Centre of India(Marxist Leninist)was formed in August 1994 through the merger of the Centre of Communist Revolutionaries og India ,with the Central Team of the C.P.I.M.L (C.T C.P.I.M.L) ,the Communist Unity Centre of India and the Marxist Leninist Organising Centre. and the organisation claimed to be the one within which principally the proletarian revolutionary line has been built up .After a continuous process of bilateral transactions this unity took place. The fact that it took such a long ,protracted process reflects the principled approach of the Unity.The organization states that the proletarian revolutionary trend lies within various Communist Revolutionary groups and that the proletarian revolutionary party has still to be formed. They brought out their basic Documents in 1995 after their Inaugural Conference. This new formation is closer to Comrade Mao’s line than any other organization in India on the theoretical and practical plane. On the International Line and on it’s analysis of the agrarian revolutionary Perspective and military line it has outstanding Marxist Leninist clarity.It has a most complete thesis of the relationship of the mass organization with the proletarian party. It explains the distinct identity and the need to function democratically within the mass organization and not impose party politics on the mass organizations. It also explains why theoretically armed Struggle and active boycott of election cannot be carried out in the present circumstances,as well as why participation in Elections is capitulationist in the present era ,without adequate development of the proletarian party.Only with forming revolutionary alterntive organs of political power and adequate political consiousness can the tactic of ‘active boycott’of elections be implemented Its basic Documents explain that today the co-relation between the revolutionary forces with the enemy has not been sufficiently developed to carry out armed Struggle. It explains the meaning of creating revolutionary base areas and military guerilla Zones .A profound contribution of the unity is not making the issue of whether 1969 formation of the C.P.I.M.L was correct or not.(It would be a matter to be decided only when the party was re-organised. Earlier this was a major controversy amongst revolutionary Groups)It is interesting that one of the components of this organization the C.P.I.M.L(C.T.)earlier insisted that the 1969 formed Organisation led by Charu Mazumdar was the actual party. Quoting the ist Issue of their publication, ‘Thecomrade’, “This Unification brought the Party Question into Sharp Focus.It has not only emphasized the pressing need and crucial significance of the Party Ree-Organisation for bringing about a new high tide in the Revolutionary Movement but also projected the line based approach to party re-organization. This highlighted the other facet of the party question ,namely the impermissibility of diluting the distinct ideological political identity of the political party. The organisation’s insistence on the distinct political identity while seeking to build the party as the leading political core of the revolutionary mass movement of the Indian People,has not only general orientational validity but also particular relevance to the Particular situation.”It has also given significant writing on linking the trade Union movement with the agrarian revolutionary Struggle in the villages.It has a sound thesis on the Workers Front where it explains the need to develop an advanced revolutionary core of workers who could propogate revolutionary politics in the villages. There is also a most sound International line demarcating from the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement and deferring the premature formation of a Communist International from the Russian and Chinese Experience.(Remember Stalin’s Comintern was dissolved in 1943 while Mao never called for a Communist International) The Organisation firmly defends the term ‘Mao Tse Tung Thought’ as against the term’Maoism’.It explains that it is the era of Imperialism which is the era of ‘Leninism’ and that even after the completion of the Chinese Revolution and the Cultural Revolution the term ‘Thought of Mao’ was used and not ‘Maoism’. In West Bengal the organization has guided revolutionary democratic trade Union Struggles and promoted joint front agitations on democratic issues uniting forces of both left and right deviationist trends.They gave emphasis on the linking of trade Union Struggles of all sections of the workers Union Struggles irrespective of the political Group leading them..In Andhra Pradesh similarly it created significant trade Union Solidarity movements. In Rajasthan and Maharashtra. it played an important role in guiding revolutionary mass work. It initiated the formation of revolutionary mass papers and strived to develop the correct practice in the trade Unions as against right opportunist and left sectarian practices.It initiated forming a revolutionary workers solidarity platform to co-ordinate workers struggles. It is significant t hat mass activists following trends of both the Chandra Pulla Reddy Line and the People’s War line joined the ranks this organization. They supported their mass approach in the Workers Front.One Activist From Mumbai attended an Election programe in Punjab in January 1998 and thought he never witnessed such revolutionary democratic Functioning.Similar views were awarded to the Malkangari Adivasi Movement by a team of Activists from Mumbai.Even Comrade Sunder Navalkar,in the perid of the early 1990’s praised the approach of the organization.In Punjab today the organization has adopted a mass revolutionary approach and has made the greatest revolutionary progress.(More theoretical and practical progresss than any revolutionary Group since the Naxalbari Struggle in 1969)The most significant aspect is maintaining the correct relationship between the mass organization and the political party.A movement of landless Agricultural labourers as well as that of middle and landed peasants has been built demarcating from deviationist tendencies.A Mass Based revolutionary democratic Organisation has been built to give solidarity and sharpen the anti-feudal Struggle which held ralliesof historic significance especially during the elections..Avenues have been created for militant peasant struggles of landless labourers in pockets in the State and for miltant district or statewide peasant struggles amongst the landed peasantry.A revolutionary alternative has been projected through the Party Organisation and the manner of projection(especially as projected by the Rajjeana Campaign and the Election campaign) displays strong theoretical correctness.A trade Union movement has also been built in the towns and major cities giving solidarity with the agarian struggle which is of great significance.Revolutionary movements of the youth and students are taking place and in many areas village youth have displayed enormous revolutionary enthusiasm. In 1998 and 1999 the Organisation carried out election campaigns in Punjab which created a major impactwhere the tactics of active political campaign in contrast to Active Boycott or Participation were implemented. Other groups could hardly make any effect. The content of the party leaflet encouraged the party ranks and followers to distribute it wide for mass consumption. The wide range of issues were explained in simple language.The immediate practical alternative was projected in the leaflet so that people could easily grasp it’s contents.The focus of the state commitees poster was on building the revolutionary movement ,with the agrarian movement as it’s axis, as an alternative The call by the C.P.I.M.Lparty Unity for boycott got no response while Groups like the Janashakti group that polled candidates got no success. Since the period of the Naxalbari and Srikakulam Armed Struggles there has never been practice so close to Comrade Mao TseTung’s mass line as in Punjab as by this organization, in the light of the overall political factor..In Orissa in the Malkangiri district an outstanding tribal Movement has been built, creating a platform for sustained agrarian revolutionary mass movement,similar to that in the phase before the Chinese Communist Party launched the Armed struggle. Or the launching of the Telengana Armed Struggle.In the light of agrarian revolutionary movement it is the most developed struggle towards attaining the mass line since the Naxalabari and Srikakulam era.
One Imortant aspect is that the Central Team group which merged into the C.P.R.C.I.(M.L) never upheld Comrade Nagi Reddy at any stage infact one time considered him to be a revisionist. However working together in Punjab in a common Front brought the 2 organisations together in the State.The C.C.R.I,(constituent of C.P.R.C.I.M.L)upheld Nagi Reddy’s line .however the 2 organsations agreed that this should not be an issue of debate.The Communist Unity Cente of India and the Marxist Leninist Organisaing Centre had in periods uphed the Nagi Reddy Line.This throws light that maybe more forces could have united earlier in the revolutionary movement ,atleast in revolutionary mass work.This is the final list of weaknesses of the Organisation at an All India level by the author.Practical level1. The organization has not developed democratic Alternative organs of revolutionary power or revolutionary base areas or mass revolutionary armed struggle like the Chinese Communist Party, in the period of armed agrarian revolutionary struggle.(1929-1949) or during the Telengana Armed Struggle in Andhra Pradesh between 1946-1951. In Punjab and in Orissa there is strong possibility that the agrarian movement may develop into an armed agrarian revolutionary Struggle pursuing the revolutionary mass line, like the Telengana Armed Struggle.However.A mass military line,unique to Indian conditions has not been developed,in theory,or in practice. A line especially with regards to the military aspect has not yet been developed completely taking into account the unique charasterictics of India and the different aspects or conditions in the various states in applying Mao Thought.True Mao TseTung’s military line is correct but the Chinese Experience cannot be copied in toto.This has remarkable significance in analyzing the link of the Indian Movement. Revolutionary Commitees of People’s democratic power are in the process of being formed but it is too early to say that the movements are heading towards the formation of true people’s bases of revolutionary power,which will facilitate the armed struggle.
.2. One can question the trend of not developing the agrarian revolutionary struggles in many states.Ony in Punjab and Orissa has peasant struggle been developed.. Mao Tse Tung stressed on building the rural movements in the countryside as the peasantry is the principal force.Mao developed concept of encircling the Cities from the rural Areas. Apart from Punjab revolutionary Movements the organisation has hardly made an impact on the youth sections There is also a weakness of the youth movement in Orissa,particularly amongst the Adivasis. In Andhra Pradesh a movement representing the mass revolutionary line as an alternative to the semi-adventurist path of the C.P.I.Maoist has not been developed nor in West Bengal.Infact work on the peasant front influenced by the mass line which was so prominent in earlier years is no more prevalent by the organisation in West Bengal. Although theoretically they have an All India Perspective in practice there is significant impact in few states.In many states still there is no organizational functioning like in Kerala,Tamil Nadu,Madhya Pradesh ,Karnattaka Etc.(Particularly Southern states).Thus in practice an all India level revolutionary movement has not been built. Apart from Punjab revolutionary Movements the oraganisation has hardly made an impact on the youth sections. Adequately developed mass –political platforms have not been built in several states of work ,apart from Orrisa and Punjab3.There have not been enough political campaigns carried out to defend Socialism and the revolutionary Movements worldwide,through seminars,Campaigns Etc.Mass-political Platforms had to bededeveloped adequately.
Appraisal regarding mass line.
I cannot still award the Communist Party Reorganisation Centre of India
(Marxist Leninist) or it’s earlier constituent organisations) with the title of upholder of the “proletarian mass line”.This is because although in their major mass struggles they have the correct concept of the relationship of the party and the mass organization(how a party must democratically function within mass organizations and not impose politics and implemented the mass line in certain struggles),they have still not developed a mass revolutionary military line in practice.No doubt their mass fronts have led struggles representing the mass line,but only on the launching of actual mass protracted revolutionary armed Struggle can the verdict be properly resolved whether an organsiation is truly upholding ‘the mass line. In the author’s view the C.P.R.C.I(M.L) has to create a alternative revolutionary movement at an All India level to descicively claim it’s upholding the mass line’In it’s major states it has done commendable work in the preparatory stages but only when the final red Army is built as in China ,Nepal or Phillipines and Peoples War is launched implementing Mao’s line can the verdict be given.The most important criteria is at what stage can you define or uphold apeoples revolutionary movement as implementing the mass line.We may have to differentiate between the’ mass line’ and the ‘mass revolutionary approach.’Many of their mass organization struggles like in Punjab and particularly in Orissa in the agrarian revolutionary Front are creating the grounds for peasant’s eventual armed struggle or uprising or people.However mass peasant revolutionary struggles have not been led which could lead to the formation of a peoples Guerilla Army. This was the stage at which mass armed struggle was built up in Telanagana and for a short period in Srikakulam and Naxalbari.(before left adventurism came in. In the author’s opinion the organisation in certain states has made major inroads and is basically correct in it’s view on elections(opposes active boycott and participation as a legal form of struggle) and that the launching of armed struggle is premature.in the majority of areas.It is also correct that in Punjab and Orissa it is still premature to carry out armed struggle. The correct preparatory mass line application is a necessary perquisite for launching a revolutionary armed struggle .The armed struggle must be linked to the agarian revolutionary struggle and based on it. A mass revolutionary peasant uprising may not have taken place but there have been demonstrations of peasants in Orissa and Punjab defending their rights or offering mass resistance against enemy forces carrying traditional armed weapons.The launching of mass armed demonstrations is of great significance and was predominamt by the mass revolutionary democratic Front in Punjab during the Khalistani period.The struggles have had an effect on surrounding villages and areas and the method by which they have defended their right to hold their own conferences and meetings reflects the mass approach.The same trend took place by the Punjab Students Union and the Naujavan Bharat Sabha in the mass movement they led in the 1970’s.The party election programmes in 1998 and 1999 were striking examples of creating a base for a mass revolutionary political movement,particularly the peasantry.Significantly teams of workers headed the propaganda campaignsOne other significant trend is the self –defence and aggression displayed by the Punjab peasantry in asserting their right to stage conferences or mass protests.In Jethuke by the landed peasantry in 2000, in Chandigarh by the landed peasantry and in Balahr Vinju in 1994 by landless peasants the peasantry displayed heroic defiance against the police forces who attempted to thwart their efforts to organize..One significant factor as though democratic revolutionary struggles have been launched by the peasantry in Punjab,a stage has not yet been reached when land re-distribution seizures are taking place or land re-distributed. )In Orissa however peasant seizures of captured land have already started taking place and laying base foe armed peasnt struggle. Mao advanced the theory of inseperable link between the agrarian revolution and the guerilla war to establish base areas.A thorough going agrarian revolution which includes the distributoin of landlords land to the poor peasants and agricultural labourers,to develop and consolidate base areas –Mao implemented such a programme,in the period of agrarian revolutionary war.The Red army led by the C.P.C implemented it. However the most important historical question is that if one studies the history of revolution no country has taken so long a period to develop revolutionary armed struggle In 1927 after the Nanchang Uprising. China launched it’s struggle only 9 years after formation of their their party(in 1921) and six years of preparatory stage.Columbia,Phillipines,Nepal , Peru,or our very own Telengana Armed Struggle may have taken longer time.(Even Peru launched it in 1980 after 16 years of party-re-organsation) but in a far shorter period accomplished the task.- than the prest Indian revolutionary movement has taken to do.Have all the constituent organisations that later merged into the C.P.R.C.I.(M.L) implemented the revolutionary mass line in the preparatory stage correctly in their states of work to lay the ground for the launching of armed struggle? This has to be concretely analysed.The various splits and wrong trends in the period of Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India(Marxsit Leninist) from the 1970’s to mid –1980’s as well as the splits and inactivity of the Central Team of the C.P.I.M.L delayed the road.It is arguable that today there may have been areas in India where mass armed struggle could have been carried out in certain areas if the mass line was correctly implemented., particularly in Bihar and Andhra Pradesh which had strong revolutionary peasant movements.In West Bengal it has been unable to develop an alternative revolutionary Movement on the problems of price rise, closure of factories, unemployment and most important, on the agrarian front.
One major factor is that there has been no re-constituted Communist Party in India .In all countries discussed the official re-organisation of the party had been accomplished. Should all the organizations have merged into Charu Mazumdar’s C.P.I.(M.L) in 1969?In the re-organization phase should so may groups have split and should they not have united intoa single body within which differences could be resolved? The answer is that the Indian revolutionary Movement is so complex that even groups with similar lines had to adopt different methods of practice in different regions of India.The best example is that of how long the M.C C merged with the C.P.I.M.L Peoples War(One worked in Andra Pradesh,the other in Bihar) or Party Unity Group.There is so much difference between Punjab and Bihar or Andhra Pradesh and Kerala Etc.Within all sections of trends so many spits have taken pace .In recent years the relative polarization has been postive.In China,Nepal,Peru,or Phillipines 2 line struggle took place within the same party.It is of historical note that in the pre1935 period from the start of the armed struggle the Chinese Communist Party was divided into several factions.Comrade Mao Tse Tung’s line was accepted only in the Tsunyi Conference in 1935 where Wang Mings left oppurtunist and Chang Kuo Ta’s right capitulationst line was defeated.Li Li San’s urban putchist uprisings ,negelecting the peasantry were exposed where the Russian line was imitated toto.Earlier in 1927 Mao also opposed the party central line after the Nanchang uprising which advocated putschist uprsings divorced from the peasantry ,and which defeated the party led movement for a temporary period.(Mao then withdrew to the mountains pursuing his line)Still,the author belives that in India it is impossible to develop the correct line within a single body,considering the differences.In no country ever has so many revolutionary groups existed.The mass line struggle would not have developed if every group merged into what was the C.P.I.M.L.Peoples War or what is now the C.P.I.Maoist.True certain polarizations could have taken place earlier.We have to analsye that can a revolutionary mass line be warded to a single organsiation before the re-organisation of a proletarian party.
One major historical contrast with the revolutionary Struggle in China was even when there were deviations of the right and left variety there was a mass armed agrarian revolutionary Struggle and Peoples protracted War,which set the base for the Long March.In India though armed struggle is being waged it does not principally represent the mass line and thus it is virtually impossible to imitate the Chinsese Situation and work within a single party ,even with different factions.
All this does not deny that the formation of the Communist Party Re-Organisation Center of India(M.L)is of historical significance towards the building of the mass revolutionary line and since it’s formation it’s work plus that of the earlier constituent organsiations will have a permanent place in ‘striving for the correctlmass line’ in the Communist Movement.
Fascinatingly we must study when Comrdae Mao used the term ‘mass line.’ Quoting an Essay by Comrdae Scott in mass line.oinfo site “the theory of the mass line is the result of Mao's summation of the practice of the Chinese Revolution. Some bourgeois writers have claimed that the mass line dates from well before the Yanan period, that it dates from the Chinese Soviet Republic period (1931-1934) for example, or even earlier.[13] The confusion here comes from the fact that Mao did use mass line methods of leadership before Yanan—but then so did Lenin and Marx still earlier. There was a period when Mao too, like earlier Marxist leaders, used the mass line method more or less unconsciously. But only during the Yanan period did Mao begin the process of scientifically summing up the theory that lay behind this practice.
On other occasions however Mao speaks of "our mass line" and so forth; he speaks of the mass line as a development of the Chinese Revolution.[17] Moreover the CPC and its members regularly attributed the mass line to Mao.[18] Well there is a simple explanation for this "paradox": Lenin did use the mass line, and did refer to the creative ability of the masses and other aspects of the theory of the mass line on many occasions, and no doubt Mao learned from this as well as from Chinese revolutionary practice. In other words it may well be that Mao "learned" the mass line method from Lenin, at least in part. Nevertheless it was Mao who summed up the theory of the mass line, who commented on it and elaborated it at length, and who became the preeminent theoretician of the mass line. Thus whatever Mao said on the score, it is only sensible to attribute the theory of the mass line to him. I noted above that in his early descriptions of the mass line method Mao did not use the phrase 'mass line' itself. Instead he referred to it as the method of "combining the leadership with the masses" (SW3:117,120) or "the method of linking the leading group with the masses" (SW3:243). Often it was also referred to as the method of "from the masses, to the masses" as in the CPC "Resolution on Certain Questions in the History of Our Party" (SW3:208). It is not until the late 1940s that the actual phrase 'mass line' begins to appear in Mao's writings (or at any rate in those available to us in his Selected Works) though it is treated from the outset as an old familiar term, evidently having already achieved widespread verbal use (SW4:184). Since the late 1940s the customary term for the method has been 'the mass line' though the older designations have also continued in use, especially in China. There have of course been widely varying notions as to exactly what sort of thing is referred to by this phrase 'mass line'. I am acquainted with some communists for example who have not identified the mass line with the method of "from the masses, to the masses" (see chapters 40-41).
After the Yanan period Mao continued to develop the theory of the mass line. For example he clarified the whole process of concentrating the ideas of the masses with his very apt simile of a factory processing raw materials into finished goods. But most of all he defended the mass line against rightist interpretations that kept cropping up, such as the bourgeois-populist view that the mass line means "doing everything as the masses want it done".[19] Even worse than the bourgeois-populist misconception of the mass line was the sinister bureaucratic, revisionist interpretation championed by the capitalist roaders Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping and their ilk. Their distortion of the mass line will be discussed in chapter 37; for now I will only point out that it is no mere coincidence that the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution which Mao unleashed against these revisionists put great emphasis on mass initiative and the mass line.’(From esay by Comrade Scott in massline .info site in the essay titled Origin and development of the mass line)

Assesment of C.P.I.Maoist-India
Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 12/02/2006 - 10:33pm. International
a.Defective agrarian revolutionary and military line
The most arguable and debatable issue is whether the armed squad actions of the C.P.I.(Maoist) are enhancing the broad revolutionary movement, particularly in Bihar,Andhra Pradesh and Dandkaranya.To me in the anti-landlord struggle still they very often implement the line of “Individual annihilation of the class enemy. However what is noteworthy is that the armed struggle led by them is still at the stage of building guerilla Zones and has not established revolutionary base areas like what the Chinese Communist Party had built in the 1936 period in China. True they have heroically defended their territories but have not been able to consolidate their gueriila Zones into base areas nor are they in the processs of doing so.They are unable to replenish their lost forces sufficiently and their self –defence in their areas.remains more on their guerilla squads than the broad masses.The most debatable aspect is whether actual conditions exist to launch armed struggle in India today particularly in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.To some extent the mass line was implemented by mass fronts like the Mazdoor Kisan Sangrami Samiti, Bharat Naujavan Sabha,Revolutionary Students League(Bihar) and the Rytu Coolie Sangham and the Radical students Union(Andhra Pradesh
The Srikakulam Girijan Sangham was formed in 1958 under the leadership of the Communist Party.The Girijans are an opressed tribal community in Andhra Pradesh and under the leadership of the Communist Party of India formed their democratic mass organisation. In the late 60`s as a result of Charu Mazumdar`s left deviationist line the organisation was virtually disbanded.There was a major mass peasant revolutionary Struggle in Srikakulam which remains in the history books of the Communist movement.However though the People`s War Group rectified the Charu Mazumdar line to some extent by forming mass organisations like the Rytu Coolie Sangham and the Radical Students Union, they continued with their line of" annihilation of class enemies."In the early 80`s the Srikakulam Girijan Sangham was re-organised and very often when mass agitations were launched the People`s War Group remained aloof.(Unintentionally) One example was the agitation for opposing the scrapping on Land Regulation Act Regulation1 of 19 70 which ensured land rights for the Girijans who had been discriminated by other classes of peasants.The non-tribal peasants continuously seized their lands and forced the Girijans to become coolies or bonded labourers.In fact in 1992 The People`s War Group carried out an action against a class enemy which the Srikakulam Girijan Sangham judged to be against the interests of the Revolutionary movement. A handbill was distributed that such actions were like killing the Mosquito but not dealing with the breeding pit.Several Group Clashes occurred between the People`s War Group and other groups like the Ramchandran Group.New Democracy Group etc where the masses were reduced to helpless spectators.Armed Squads combated members from other groups struggling to maintain their bases!This was an incorrect approach to the question of mass line and politicalStruggle.One Group always feared the entry of another group in their area of work.Thus the Communist Revolutionary Groups behaved antagonistically with one another.In fact the State benefited from this .This started from the 1098’s but was very prominent in the early 1990’s.The Peoples War Group mantained that cadres from other groups were killed on entirely tactical grounds and they were not clashes in hir statements and documents.
Below I am quoting 2 articles.One from revolutionary Journal’The Comrade’, the other from an article bu Chakrapani in Frontier.’At the conclusion of the decade of the 1990’s 3 important leaders of the People’s war Group were slain in a police encounter. A massive anti-repression programme took place in Andhra Pradesh in December 1999.Such Comrades were truly the best sons of the land heroically laying down their lives for liberation.Various communist Revolutionary Groups belonging to various groups participated.The People`s War Group launched retaliatory Actions to give a severe blow to the Indian State.After the armed Actions the People`s War Group made a self-critical assesment stating"Even when there were ample opportunities to educate and involve the People,our cadres only resorted to protest actions.These are incorrect actions.Because of non-participation of people in such actions,the outcome of such actions, is contrary to the impact we wanted"Thus this group was not aware that such armed actions of Party Guerilla Squads,by themselves cannot succeed in their basis and ultimate objective of defeating the reactionary State.Infact the people have to own such actions and voluntarily participate in them with revolutionary political Consciousness and confidence in their own organised strength.Even in the post encounter Joint Protests the leading rank of the People`s War Group remained pre-occupiedwith either the representative team protests or armed retaliatory actions.-thus their organized attempts for militant mass attempts for militant mass political mobilisations remained Sparse.One cannot deny the People`s War Group for their bravery and tenacity in standing upto the tyranny of the Stae and retaliating against it but without a correct approach towards mass armed Struggle the Revolutionary movement will not build up properly.’(From the Comrade)
Why are the vast masses of people in the areas under the influence or control of Peoples war remain laregely as spectators or silent sympathizers? Why they find themselves helpless when confronted with the heavy arm of the state?Thousands of acres of land remain fallow for years even in areas where the land was said to have been re-distributed and the landlords were chased from the villages.Why?Many action s by the armed formation sof the Peoples war where they sought to dictate terms on the strength of weapon are dubious-assasinated individuals indiscriminately,mined the fields,blew up buildings and installations Etcthe way they carried out the election boycott line and verdicts of the Peoples Courts and the way they sought to assert and establish the revolutionary Supremacy over other organizations invited wide criticism,condemnation and even protest among the people,democratic and Progressive Circles.The Peoples war leadership ,belatedly expressed it’s regret at some of them,but continued in some form ,or the other,the same practice even later.The Peoples War leadership without taking account of the level and nature of the movement with regards to the state of class Struggle and agrarian revolutionary Movement in their areas of Struggle.Their military formations and operations are not in relation to the level of class struggle and Agrarian Revolutionary Movement.Their types of activities and actions that their formations carry out do not take into account the people’s Consciousness and preparedness,organization and participation in the struggle to a higher level .Some of their armed actions dampen and even negate the People’s mass struggles. In reality the Peoples war Group although the Strongest revolutionary force in the Country suffers from sectarianism,militarism and anarchism. It has a big brother approach to other revolutionary organizations. Only when in dire need do they form united Fronts with other revolutionary Groups, resorting to mass mobilizations on general issues. Their indiscriminate armed actions, assassination of Individuals and destruction of properties by thev armed bands may pose some trouble and loss, but they cannot pose a grave danger to the system as such.The Peoples war leadership claim to have vast areas under the leadership of their guerrilla Zones or areas of Influence.Theya lso declare that they have formed their own Peoples Guerilla Army.Howevever although they have a semblance to Mao’s line in reality they still have not developed the correct practice pf Maoist Protracted Peoples Military Warfare.(From Frontier article by Chakrapani in February2002)
Those articles depict that The party has carried out several armed actions. However they have not all received mass support and often substituted the people’s role Although the C.P.I.Maoist cadre in Bihar and Andhra have made heroic sacrifices their armed actions although with most sincere intentions do not build up a protracted People’s War as propounded by Comrade Mao. There are powerful tendencies of individual heroism .To carry out armed Struggle the Party of the proletariat has to establish it’s leadership over the revolutionary movement as well as having set up organs of parallel political power. Today the level of political consciousness and preparedness is inadequate in Bihar.The people are not sufficiently educated in the politics of seizure of power. Although it is a principal task to set up liberated areas the present co-relation of forces is inadequate to set them up.People have to be trained to organise their own self-defence.Without the above mentioned conditions Armed actions would substitute the role the people need to play.Still, the author of this article has he greatest respect for some of he military actions carried out in Bihar. In recent times in retaliation against the police. True the armed squads have erred when it ahs come to implementing the mass line in the anti-landlord struggles and their have been indiscriminate actions ..They propogate active boycott of parliamentary elections. The boycott slogan is meaningless until the people have set up alternative organs of people’s revolutionary power.Without the scope of direct revolutionary mass action and setting up of parralel organs of people’s revolutionary power is thus an irresponsible left sectarian orientation.In today’s situation the only suitable tactic is to launch an active political campaign and help people build alternative organs of revolutionary power.(Participation of elections today would lead to capitulationism as the proletarian party lacks sufficient mass political influence. Although one cannot deny the sincerity of the armed squads,the armed actions have to be based on the strength of the people’s movements as advocated by Mao.Armed stuggle is totally necessary to fight the revisionist line but has to be carried out at the appropriate time.Only when alternate organ’s of people’s power have been founded can the tactic of ‘active boycott of parliamentary elections’ be used effectively.Political education of the people has to take place.The C.P.I(Maoist) has built up powerful peasant movements in Andhra and Dandkarnaya .They have to be give n credit for this. However the left adventurism trends have to be fought against to develop the revolutionary movement.The experience of the Chinese Communist party in re-organising after the Chingkanshan movement and starting armed Struggle has to be studied in this regard.Mao`s struggle against the left deviationist LI-Li San line and the rightist Chang Kuo-Ta line was significant .Ultimately Mao`s mass line was supported in the 1935 Tsunyi conference.All the armed actions of the Red Army were based on the people.The success of the Long March testified this Their boycott call is often meaningless as in certain areas of Andhra Pradesh and Bihar they have supported candidates of opportunist parties like the Bahujan Samaj.To defeat Enemy forces they have sometimes called for supporting opposition candidates which shows the inconsistency of properly implementing the tactic of Active boycott of parliamentary Elections.We must study the experience oh how Comrade Mao led the Chinese Communist Party on forming liberated areas.The Chingkanshan Experience has to be studied as well as the methods adopted in the strategic defensive military era ,strategic equilibrium and the Strategic offensive.The Red Army was founded on the basis of a mass agrarian revolutionary peasant movement and it’s formation was based on the people’s movements .It was the equivalent of making a solid foundation and building a pyramid or the relationship of a wheel with an axle.Today the organization claims to have developed guerilla Zones and base areas. . True the C.P.I.Maoist has mass support in major areas in Bihar, Andhra and Dandakaranya , has base areas in some respects similar to those of the Chinese Revolutionary period during their armed struggle and have carried out magnificient retaliatory actions in self defence against enemies-the only revolutionary Organization to have seriously attempted protracted Peoples Warfare in recent times.e(reminding one of armed action sin Nepal,Peru and Phillipines) In actual fact in Andhra Pradesh,Dandkaranya and Bihar there are pockets of revolutionary resistance dictated by armed..In none of their base areas have they distributed even half the amount of land distributed in the Telengana Armed struggle or anywhere near what the Chinese Red Army did in the Agrarian revolutionary war.Their Armed squads, even if they partially integrate with mass movements often are used to give shelter to mass organizations and replace peoples independent actions. The armed actions on police stations, whatever the sincerity of the squad members often replace the mass movements, rather than supplement them.They are losing more and more cadre day by day and are unable to consistently replace the fighting forces lost. It is also significant that as a consequence of their squad actions it is not only the cadre of the organization that is attacked by the State but also ordinary sympathizers and civilians.In West Bengal, retaliatory actions took place just 2 months ago in retaliation of tortire and killing of mass sympathizers and cadres,l ike the blowing up of a police jeep. However such actions have no relationship with the actual mass peoples Movement and the it cost the lives of innocent people.In revolutionary struggle ethics is an important question and revolutionary violence does not justify the killing of innocent people.Were not the policemen beloging to the middle peasant class and were they criminals? An Innocent mid-day meal cook was beaten to death by a police informer in Karimnagar. What oif she was actually innocent .Her family members were beaten up when thy offered resistance!The C.P.I.(Maoist)have eliminated may people suspected of being police informers who could have been innocent on grounds of their safety.In the authors view this is violation of revolutionary ethics.Mass Organisations like the Andhra Pradesh Radical Students Union or the Rythu Coolie Sangham can hardly carry out open activities or agitations, nor can the Mazdur Kisan Sangrami Parishad in Bihar. It must be noted that nowhere in Andhra Pradesh,Dandkaranya or Bihar has any struggle been developed even half as strong as the Telengana One. Quoting the eminent intellectual and critique of Naxalite Movement Sumanta Banerjee (wrote famous book ‘In the wake of Naxalabari’ and isolate them‘It should be pointed out however that despite their survival for almost four decades, the Naxalites do not yet control any large area comparable to the `liberated zone' that the Chinese Communists could establish in Yenan within a decade or so in the 1930-40 period, or the sizable tract that the Maoists occupy in neighbouring Nepal today. They have not been able to reach out to the masses of the peasantry in the vast countryside of other parts of India, and have expanded only to a few isolated pockets and stretches of areas inhabited mainly by tribal and landless poor. Closeted in their rural underground shelters, the Naxalite leaders have ignored the task of setting up bases among the large number of workers both in the organized industrial and the unorganized sectors. They have also failed to build up a regular army like the Chinese People's Liberation Army, or the Vietnamese military organization – that helped both the Chinese and the Vietnamese to effectively fight their enemies.These shortcomings have both crippled and distorted the character of the Naxalite movement. The failure to establish a `liberated zone' has frustrated their original strategy of setting up an alternative order to bring about agrarian and social reforms. Instead, all their energies are now devoted to defensive actions to preserve their pockets of influence, and offensive assaults which are degenerating into acts of terrorism against soft targets like village headmen or junior government employees.’ Quoting a 1999 C.P.I.M.L(Peoples War pamphlet)
In the author’s view the military line cannot be called a practice of Che Gueveraist Foco line or Guevarism,sice it seriously attempts Mao’s theory of Peoples War.However in many aspects of practice their military line diverts from Mao’s concepts.
The C.P.I(M.L)P.W.in May 1985 gave a call for a war of self defence.to counter the enemy’s offensive. By consistent efforts,by 1988,the initiative was regained. Witnessing this large mobilsation the govt.stepped up repression on alarger sale than 1991.Anway,witnessing this large scale mobilization, the government stepped up repression by 1991,on a larger scale than 1985.In the last 3 to 4 years ,to varying degrees these tasks have been initiated and the consolidation of the guerilla Zone is in process in Northern Telengana and Dandkaranya,while in the 3 regions of the East Zone,Souh Telenganaand Nallamala forest region hich are at the preparatorystage of the guerilla Zone ,too,this process is going on.Also while the mass struggles have continued inspite of repressuion ,the military capabilities have vastly improved.
Hitorically there is a difference between revolutionary base areas and gueriall zones.Quoting Mao’s writings on military line, “When guerilla Warfare began,the guerillas could not completely occupy the places ,but could only make frequent raids,,they are areas which are held by the guerilla forces when they are presnt and the by the puppet regime when they are gone.Thus they are not guerilla basesbut zones.Thse zones can be converted into bases by consolidating guerilla warfare and after large portions of enemy troops have been annihilated,and the puppet regime destroyed..The mass organsiations alos formed as well as peoles local armed forces.The extent to which the enemy is destroyed is the vital factor.“The fundamental conditions for establishing a base aea are that there should be any –enemy armed and thes armed forces should be deployed to inflict defeats on the enemy and arouse the peoleinto action.The esatablishment of a bsae area is first and foremost as a matter of building an armed force.The second condition is that the armed forces hould be used in co-ordination with the peole to defeat the enemy.All places under enemy controla rea enemy,and not guerilla,base areas unless the enemy is defeated.Unless enemy attacks are repulsed,even places held under gueriall control will come under the hands of the enemy.Thirdly, we must organize an army and mass organizations and mobilize as many democratic forces against the common enemy. The people have to be aroused to consolidate the local organs of power. The original organs of power must be re-organized and consolidated with the support of the brad masses, and where they have been destroyed must be rebuilt.Geographical and Economic conditions must be studied. A necessary perquisite is that an area must be extensive.Base areas have to be consolidated.Guerilla warfare must be from their base area as widely as possible ,thwarting all enemy strongholds thus threatening the existence of the enemy.However the local masses must be organized, guerilla units trained and local armed forces developed. Expansion must be merged with consolidation, depending on the situation.Mao advocated the theory of the Strategic Defensive and the strategic offensive. “Within the nation-wide strategic defensive or offensive, small scale strategic offensives or defensives take place in an around every base area. Strategic defensive means the strategic policy when the enemy is on the offensive, while strategic offensive, means our strategic policy when the enemy is on the defensive and we are on the offensive”“In The strategic defensive to wipe out the guerillas and their base areas, the enemy often launches converging attacks. The larger the scale of fighting) In the student and youth section although there is a revolutionary movement led by the groups(‘Go to Village Campaigns’, ‘go to factories and Slum Campaigns’)there is still a lot of glorification is given to armed squad heroes and mass agrarian revolutionary politics is not upheld. Peasant organization were formed by both groups but there was still lack of cohesive revolutionary resistance to combat the onslaught of the C.PI.M.revisionist Forces, the more important the position of the base areas, and the greater threat to the enemy’s strategic centers and vital communication lines, the fiercer will be the enemy’s attacks.Therefore,the fiercer the enemy’s attacks on a guerilla area, the greater the indication that the guerilla warfare is successful and is being effectively coordinated..“In the Strategic Offensive, we do not attack enemy forces entrenched in defensive positions, and we are not sure of defeating, but systematically to destroy or drive out the small enemy units, which our guerilla forces are strong enough to tackle. Weakly garrisssoned cities can be attacked as well as communication lines which can help expand our areas. The purpose is to take advantage of the enemy which is on the defensive and build up our own military and mass, to reduce the might of the enemy and smash it with another offensive. strength.’“In this period the guerilla Zones and units are in high spirits, and the areas destroyed by the enemy are revived. The people in the enemy areas also have a very high morale. The morale is in contrast down in the enemy camp.
The C.P.I. (Maoist). in implementation of line often confused the difference between forming a guerilla zone and a base area. Today the trend is similar. In their zones they retaliate and defend their areas through their guerilla squad actions and are not able to replenish their losses. They do not have sufficient support of the broad masses. There is insufficient development of mass agrarian revolutionary struggle and revolutionary democratic Peoples Mass Organizations.
We must remember the method of functioning of the Chinese Red Army in the period of pre- armed struggle and armed struggle phase. It is relevant to compare the armed struggle of the C.P.I. (Maoist) with the armed struggle of the Chinese Red Army. And asses the similarities and differences. With Here are some compiled notes from ‘Red Star over China’ and “Edgar Snow’s China.”
“By spring peasant struggles began to erupt in Hupeh, KInagsi, Fukien and Hunan, with a militant tendency. In 1927 the Autumn Harvest uprising was organized which propagated a programme.Before 1927 Mao had written a thesis on the peasant movement through his ‘Report and Investigation of the Peasant movement in Hunan’14 great deeds were mentioned .The greatest one was that the poor peasants were organized against the enemies. In addition to that political prestige of landlords was smashed, landlords compelled to audit accounts, grain hoarding opposed, police chiefs offices taken over and magistrates elected, most brutal oppressors paraded through the streets, usury stopped, landlords militia conquered banditry eliminated, oppressive landlords fined, male tyranny over woman fought against, mass education amongst illiterates promoted, superstitious customs fought against, marketing and credit co-operatives organized, and roads and irrigation projects built financed by landlords.
Attempts at armed risings in Canton and Nanchang were ruthlessly suppressed. Collecting fragments of the peasant associations Mao launched the first rural armed insurrection, called the Autumn Harvest Uprising. Implementing complete separation from the Kuomintang, organisation of a peasant worker revolutionary army, confiscation of the property of small and middle, as well as great landlords, setting up the power of the Communist Party of Hunan and organization of the Soviets By September a widespread uprising was organized, through the peasant uprisings of Hunan, and the first units of the worker-peasant army were formed. Recruits were drawn from the peasantry, the Hanyang miners and the insurrectionist troops of the Kuomintang. This was called the ‘First division of the Workers and peasants army.’ It is significant that the miners were included as it illustrates the importance of the work I the Working class area. By 1922 the Hunan party had already organized more than twenty trade Unions among miners, railway workers, municipal employees, renters and workers in the govt.mint. Numerous struggles were organized with youth and students.”
“‘In the 6th Congress of the Party resolutions wee made approving of the emphasis on the agrarian movement. Work as expanded to new Soviet district A democratic programme was propagated in the Soviet of Chingkanshan in November 1927.Mao’s first army front committee refused to adopt the putschist tactics of raiding, burning and killing the landlords. In May 1928 Chu The’s forces combined with Mao’s and a plan was drawn to build a six hsien soviet area to consolidate the Communist power in the Hunan,Kiangsi,Kwantung border districts.2 tendencies were combated.0ne to advance to the capital of Changshah,the other to retreat to the South of the Wanton border. It was advocated that land had to be divided, masses armed Etc.Kuomintang officials wee killed and Soviet governments established areas which included a population of fifty-70 millions of peasants were bolshevized. A mass effort to establish political, economic and social reforms was launched.Landlords, usurers and local militarists were liquidated Debts were canceled, deeds torn up, and land distributed amongst peasants and soldiers.
Fascinatingly, originally the Red Army was armed with traditional arms like pitchforks and spears. (Similar to Naxalbari Movement in India).”
“The 4th army went on to carry successful campaigns after the 4th Red army was formed in Chingkanshan.A soviet was established in Tongue where unity was built with local red troops. The existence of militant mass movements prior to the arrival of the Red Army assured their successs, and helped to consolidate Soviet power. The influence of the Red Army now extended, through the agrarian mass movements and partisans. A conference was held in Lucien in December 1929, which developed the plans for the future of the Red Army. It paved the way for the creation of soviet in Kiangsi.Question of land policy was argued at length, an s well as the struggle against opportunism. The Kiangsi provisional Soviet govt was formed which was enthusiastically received by the peasants.”
In the later period it is worth recounting how the Chinese Red Army was victorious in the 5th campaign against Chiang Kai Shek.The Red Army retreated from Kiangsi so swiftly and secretly that the main forces of red troops, estimated at about 90,000 men, had already been marching for several days before the enemy headquarters was aware of what was happening. Partisans replaced the regular troops in Southern Kiangsi when practically the whole red army was constituted near Yutu, in Southern Kiangsi the order was given for the Great Long March. Besides the army, thousands of red peasants, children, and women including non –communist elements joined the march....’
“By 1935 It is worth recounting the achievements of the Red Army formed ‘Soviet Society’. Land was confiscated from the officials big landlords, tax collectors Etc and the immediate demands of the poor peasantry was satisfied. he Reds not only created the economic base for support amongst the poor and landless peasantry by giving them farms but in some cases won the gratitude of the middle peasants, by abolishing tax exploitation. I n some cases small landlords was won over to their side in the anti-Japanese movement. Both the landlord and rich peasant was allowed as much land as they could as long as they cultivated it with their own labour.In districts where there was no land scarcity, the lands of resident landlords and rich peasants was not confiscated, but the wasteland and land of absentee owners was distributed Poor farmers were given loans at very low rates of interest, Usury was abolished and several thousand agricultural implements made in the Red Arsenals. Thousands of pounds of grain were supplied to landless peasants breaking wasteland. A primitive agricultural school was built, too. Co-operative farming was introduced Corruption was stopped, opium was eliminated that had been so predominant earlier, beggary and unemployment eliminated, foot binding abolished, child slavery abolished, prostitution banned, introduced divorce laws I, education made free and universal Etc.”
“The fact that the Reds had their base in the mass of the population was reflected in the fact that in all the older Soviet Districts the policing and guarding was done by the peasant organizations alone. There were few red Army garrisons in the Soviet Districts all the fighting strength of the army being kept I the Front. Local defense was carried out by the village defense corps, peasant guards and partisans The Intensive organization of the peasantry created a rear guard and base which freed the Red Army to operate with extreme mobility for which it was noted... Wherever the Reds went they radically changed the situation of the tenant farmer, the poor farmer he middle farmer and all the have not elements .All forms of taxation were abolished in the new districts only a progressive single tax on land was collected .The Reds gave land to the land hungry peasants and also seized the land and livestock from the wealthy classes and re-distributed it to the poor.”
“A structure was established within the Soviets. Each village elected its delegates to the higher Soviets clear up to the delegates elected for the Soviet Congress. Various committees were established under each of the district Soviets. An all powerful Committee, usually elected in a mass meeting shortly after the occupation of a district by the Red Army, and preceded by an intensified propaganda campaign, was the revolutionary Committee. It called for elections and re-elections, and closely cooperated with the Communist Party.Commitees were formed in every branch organ of the Soviets, right up to the Central Government. The Communist Party had an extensive membership amongst farmers and workers and not only in the government. There was also an organization of Young Communist-The young vanguards and the Children’s brigades. Mass Organizations like Communist Youth Leagues, Etc were organized. Peasant guards were also incorporated into such an organized structure. The mass base of the soviet Movement was built upon the organization of workers and peasants Unions, with the principal role in the hands of the peasantry.’
“The Chinese Communists never regarded land distribution as anything more than a phase in building a mass base. They ultimately aimed to establish a Socialist State In Fundamental Laws of the Chinese Soviet Republic; The first All-China-Soviet Congress in 1931 had written an established programme showing this. However the social, political and economic organization of the Red districts had always been a provisional affair and still the main task was to build a military and political base for the extension of revolution on a wider and deeper scale, rather than try out Communism in China.”
Collective production brigades were established Activities were carried out beyond production and distribution. Great areas could be quickly planted and harvested collectively. In ‘Saturday Brigades’ not only children’s organizations but every Soviet official, Red Partisan, Red Guard, omens organization members, and any Red Army detachment participated. An economic, cultural and political Unity was incorporated through this process.
The mass line of the Red army is depicted by a red Devil. (members of the children’s or youth corpse)
‘Are there any landlords left here?
The Young comrade Hsiao Key replied, ’No, no landlords. They have all run away and been killed by our Red Army’
This answer reflected how the masses felt that the Red Army was their own army.
During the Long March, often the peasantry sent groups to urge the reds to detour and liberate their districts. The broad masses only understood it was a poor man’s army and hardly understood the Red Army’s political programme.The Red Army had destroyed land deeds, abolished taxes and armed the poor peasantry.”
We must also throw light on the intra party struggle. Mao won a 2line struggle against Li San who opposed the rural soviets and urged that strong aggressive tactics were launched in Changshah, Wuhan and Nanchang.In Li’s view only a mighty offensive by the workers would paralyze the enemy and he propagated uprisings in the Cities, following the Soviet led Urban insurrectionist line. Mao fought for the theory that the peasantry was the principal force and the revolution was principally rural. Later Wang Ming also opposed Mao supporting the urban based line .Only during the Long March in January 1935 was Mao’s line established to be principally correct and he was elected chairman of the Communist Party in Tsunyi. Here the right capitulationist line of Chan Kuo Ta and the adventurist line of Wang Ming was defeated.
b...Defective approach towards trade UnionsOn the trade Union Front the Peoples War Group has not been able to form democratically functioning trade Unions and often has ended up giving political slogans of revolutionary Armed Struggle not compatible with the political capacity of broad sections of the Working Class.The Working class was not fully explained the link between their interests and the agrarian revolutionary movement but slogans glorifying heroes of Armed squads are raised by the Peoples War Group. There is also lack of revolutionary mass work in the major cities relating the trade Union work to the Agrarian revolutionary Struggle. Left sectarian slogans are taken within their trade Unions which the workers find difficult to relate with their day to day lives. The relationship of the movements in the towns with the major cities is like a bark of a tree with its branches. True in there are Unions like the Signaler coal mine Union in Andhra Pradesh as well as Unions in West Bengal. In major states of Struggle open mass work is virtually impossible and thus there is an ineffective role of revolutionary mass organizations
c.incorrect approach to Mass OrganizationsTrue since the 1980’s members of squads of the Peoples War Group made heroic sacrifices literally dipping their blood. A huge peasant movement was led in Andhra Pradesh and at al All India level on the initiative of the organization fronts like the All India Revolutionary Students Federation and the All India league for revolutionary culture (With collaboration of M.C.C and Party Unity Forces) were formed The author remembers the 19980 Rytu Coolie Sang ham Conference in Warangal in Andhra Pradesh where a rally of 4 lakh peasants took place as though a tornado had emerged. However in such fronts Mao Tse Tung thought was imposed as the guiding ideology and a necessary part of the manifesto which acts against the democratic nature of a mass organization. The author remembers going to the 1989 A.I R.S F Conference.(In 1985 the first All ndia Revolutionary Student federation was formed comprising of organizations from Andhra Pradesh, set Bengal, Punjab Etc.Trrue there were 10,000 delegates, a remarkable achievement but how may mass student participants in the country can be mobilized under the banner of Mao Tse Tung Thought? In the ‘Charu era’ it was advocated that mass organizations should be abandoned. The P.W.G later made a rectification in the late 70’s and decided to form mass organizations. There are strong tendencies of forming mass organizations as front organisations.Mass organizations must be given their separate identity. Only when the major section of a mass organization accepts the politics of the revolutionary party can mass organizations function as front organisations.Although such sections have formed mass organizations there are still tendencies of confusing the mass organizations with the Party. Although on the practical plane they lead a powerful mass democratic movement there is still not enough democratization as needed in a mass movement within a mass organisation.Mass organizations ,particularly the peasant front need continuous regularization of committees and activists working within them have to be encouraged in running the mass organizations. Masses must be trained to take part in political decisions and organize programmes on their own initiative.Infact running mass organizations as front organisations is a form of imposing one’s politics on the people.In Bihar today although there is a healthy trend of revolutionary forces coming together there is lack of a democratic cohesive front organising the people against the two-pronged terror of landlord and State terrorism.Such a front is needed where revolutionary groups do not propogate revolutionary polemics but enhance people to organise their own self defence.Even during the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition Communist revolutionaries of Bihar, however sincerely they protested were unable to set up a mass anti-communal front against communalism and thought it was adequate to fight from the platform of sectional revolutionary organisations. revolutionary democratic platform during the Shankhar bigha and Laxmanpur Bathe massacres.In the major struggle areas of Bihar like Jehanabad and Palamau as well as Aurangabad and Gaya open mass activity is impossible.After an Interview with the Democratic Students Union president Amitabh the author learnt that only in Bhagalpur,Chaibasai and Darsingh Serai Regions was open work possible in the student and youth front.Today organizations like the Democratic Students Union,Bharat Naujavan Sabha and Mazdoor Kisan Sangrami Parishad can hardly function openly in both Bihar and Jharkhand.(Only perhaps in Bhagalpur In November 2004 a go a call was given for a rally in Patna by the Organisation.However the rally could not take place...In West Bengal mass front’s of the peasants students youth and cultural section fought together for democratic struggles.In the trade Union Front left sectarian understanding prevented the groups from working towards a broad based trade Union movement.However there was a strong tendency to form mass organisations as front organisations and thus impose the party’s views on the mass organisations.In a revolutionary movement the party must function democratically within mass organisations.The political line of the mass organization and party must not be confused.Only at certain stages of a revolutionary movement can mass organisations function as front organisations. This is when mass sections within the mass organisation accept the party’s politics.There were tendencies to impose Mao-Tse-Tung thought in the manifesto of mass organisations.Mass organisations were used as party platforms. Mao always stressed on separating the role of the mass organisations with the Party .He always stressed that The Chinese Communist Party had to be differentiated from the Youth league and the Peasants Associations. The Chinese Red Army placed particular emphasis on democratically working within mass organisations and not imposing politics. In Punjab there is strong left sectarian Understanding in the functioning of the C.P.I.Maoist in the Bharatiya Kisan Union(Landed Farmers Union).The Union was a general democratic fighting organization of the middle and landed peasantry and thus it could not be converted into a revolutionary Peasant Assocciation to become a front organization of the revolutionary Party.The Union could only be a launching pad or a base to create such an organization.There were strong tendencies of revolutionary groups like C.P.I.Maoist(At that time Peoples War and Earlier Party Unity) working within the Bharatiya Kisan Union Ekta of imposing the Party Politics on the mass Organisations.They Introduced Maoist politics not compatible with the Consciousness of the masses.True the Proletarian Politics has to be introduced within a mass organization without which a proletarian revolutionary movement cannot be created but only when the masses have been imbibed with the necessary Political Consciousness.In this light in 1998 the revolutionary Group violated the revolutionary Norms by giving a call to the Punjab peasants to participate in an anti-W.T.O.rally in Delhi.The correct trend within the B.K.U emphasized the need for a revolutionary Democratic movement but made continuous efforts to only raise slogans in accordance to the Consciousness of the members of the Union..The need for instilling the correct revolutionary level of Consciousnesss before introducing the higher level revolutionary Party Politics is the Equivalent of giving Anesthesia to a patient before a heartTrue major rallies have been led containing sympathizers but this is not necessarily mean that the mass line is being carried out.In the 1997 Rally commemorating the 30th Anniversary of the Naxalbari Armed Struggle there was a mobilization of over 10 lakhs but the methods of mobilization resorted to were not consistent in relation to the consciousness of the broad masses.The content of mass agrarian revolutionary line ,building of revolutionary mass organizations and democratic Organisations of peoples power was ineffectively explained.Today the C.P.I Maoist is having negotiations with the Andhra Pradesh Government.Is this the same situation confronted by Comrade Mao in 1937 when he united with Chiang Kai Shek’s Kuomintang forces?This is evidence of the fact that left adventurist politics ultimately is the root of right deviation. It is significant that in 1995 the Maoist Communist Centre pulled out of the All India Peoples Resistance Forum.They claimed that the forum should have given the election boycott slogan, not understanding that it was a wrong to use such type of mass front for that use.The A.I.P.R.F could give solidarity to election boycott campaigns but it was not in their scope to actively propogate boycott of election.Thisshowed M.C.C’s defective understanding on the question of mass organization. In Bihar it did not advocate forming a separate revolutionary peasant organization and only called form forming revolutionary peasant committees.(Unlike the Party Unity which formed the M.K S.S) the Party Unity Group.The manner in which Comrade Mao within a single party fought against Wang Mings’ left deviation as well as the 14 Russian Bolsheviks proposing armed urban insurrection is of great significance.The methods used by the Peruvian Communist Part before they initiated armed struggles as well as the Communist Party of Phillipines would be also a reference point in mass line.This organization also has a big brother approach to other revolutionary organizations.They fail to understand that the development of the unified proletarian party is only in it’s re-building stage and all the groups are only components of the final unified party like many part’s of a machine.6 years ago(by the Erstwhile Peoples War Group) they condemned a revolutionary group the C.P.I.M.L New Democracy Group as a revisionist outfit and unjustly slandered the group ..In Mumbai a similar attitude was displayed in joint front protests against state repression on members of their organization.They have also wrongly replaced the term Maoism with Mao Tse Tung Thought.This is wrong understanding of the present era which is actually the era of Leninism.Even after the Chinese revolution it was called the “thought of Mao Tse Tung” and not ‘Maoism. In Punjab and Maharashtra powerful deviationist tendencies have been exhibited. About 12 years ago in Maharashtra on grounds of opposing foreign funding and collaborating with Non Governmental Organisations majority of members o f the Maharashtra Section were expelled. operation.
d.Wrong understanding with regards to, Dalit question and nationality question.
There is also an erroneous understanding with regards to he Dalit or scheduled caste movements. The Organization has not applied a correct class analytical study and often replaced class struggle with Caste Struggle.Dalit Parties which collaborate with Ruling Class politics have been supported like he Dalit Panther and Republican Party of India. The Dalit Mahasabha has been supported in Andhra Pradesh. Even In Bihar in the agrarian revolutionary movement there has been a strong tendency to support Ruling class Dalit Organisations.Killings have taken place often on caste line instead of implementing class struggle.)It is significant that even in earlier periods the OrganisationsThe organization (that time Peoples War Group) supported the 1989 Chinese Student Movement as well as the movements in East European Countries toppling the Revisionist Regimes in Eastern Europe in 1989 ,not taking into account the petit bourgeois nature of the agitations ,virtually devoid of proletarian content. Similarly they have supported nationality struggles devoid of proletarian content like the J.K.L.F.in Kashmir, the U.L.F.A in Assam Etc.True they have correctly defended the right of nationalities to secede but have not analyzed that the nationality struggles are led by petit-bourgeois ideology . They also have not made sufficient study of the Telengana Armed Struggle.
eDefective approach to other organizations
The C.P.I.Maoist regards itself as the re-organised Communist Party and that after the merger of C.P.I.M.L (Peoples War Group) with the Maoist Communist Centre the Proletarian party was formed. In 1998 when the Party Unity Group merged with the Peoples War Group they claimed that the original 1969 C.P.I.M.L of Charu Mazumdar was re-organised.It regards several revolutionary groups as revisionist .It hardly unites with groups of other trends in significant political issues.It carried out a slander against the C.P.I.M.L New Democracy Group in Andhra Pradesh.
10D Appraisal of the C.P.I. (Maoist)
The first major Unity to praise was the Unity of the C.P.I.M.L Party Unity and the C.P.I.M.L Peoples War in 1998, which had historic value .It as a most principled Unity where after almost 2 decades of consistent exchange between the 2 organizations merged. It is most principled with regards to Internal and International line and has succeed in promoting the Interests of the Ultimate Unified party It greatly helped the Party Unity Group in Bihar who needed the unity to support the development of the base areas.Avenues for a strong All India Perspective have been launched. Significantly it united the movements of the Northern part of India (Bihar and Bengal) with the Southern part (Andhra Pradesh and Dandkaranya) and was thus historic. This trend was a great combat to regionalism in the revolutionary Movement, particularly as Northern India and Southern India have such diverse culture. After the group clashes in Bihar between the Peoples War Group and the Maoist Communist Centre it is a great achievement that they could merge into the C.P.I.(Maoist) and resolve differences and their merger is of historic significance as they existed as different organizations for over 30 years despite so much similarity. They made self-criticism which is praiseworthy in the Marxist Leninist Sense. This is a remarkable thing as Earlier the erstwhile C.P.I.M.L (Peoples War) and Erstwhile C.P.I. (M.L) Party Unity (Before and after they united in 1998) insisted that the 1969 Charu Mazumdar C P.I.M.L. was the re-organised party and not just a revolutionary organization. Now both the Charu Mazumdar C.P.I. (M.L) and the Maoist Communist Centre are recognized as the 2 original revolutionary parties. In Dandkaranya, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh the C.P.I.Maoist carried out historic armed retaliatory actions to defend their movements comparable with those of the Chinese Red Army or even to the Nepalese Red Army in recent years. After the assassination of 3 major Central Committee Members in 1999 their armed squads stood up heroically.Every year they carry out huge rallies in their struggle areas commemorating the Naxalbari movement and upholding martyrs inspite of intensified repression. They are the first revolutionary Organisation in India since Naxalbari to have formed a Peoples Guerilla Army. Their mass organizations cadres have made heroic sacrifices in fronts like the Bharat Naujavan Sabha and the Mazdoor Kisan Sang ram Parishad in Bihar and the Radical Students Union and the Rytu Coolie Sang ham in Andhra Pradesh .The efforts of the organisation to give solidarity to the revolutionary struggles in Peru, Nepal and Phillipines is noteworthy. They have also made great efforts to defend Marxism –Leninism Mao Tse Tung Thought and done creditable propaganda upholding Mao Tse Tung Thought through seminars, rallies and conferences. Recently they organised 2 seminars in West Bengal. On the All India Front the historic achievement was the founding of the All India Peoples Resistance Forum in 1992(Now the Revolutionary Democratic Front) by the Peoples War Group, Maoist Communist Centre and Party Unity Group. It United the Revolutionary Forces country wide Fro Punjab to Karnataka. In 1992 a spectacular rally was staged involving 10 lakh people who came mainly from the states of Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. Thousands participated from West Bengal and Maharashtra.In 1994 officially the Forum was formed in Calcutta. This played a major role in uniting the revolutionary peasant movements of Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Dandkarnaya. In 1996 the A.I.P.R.F held their first All India Conference. They passed anti Imperialist Resolutions, opposed repression on Democratic Rights, and upheld Nationality Struggles.In August 1997 the Organisation held a seminar on the true Face of 50 years of Indian Independence in Mumbai in Matunga.It was of historic significance that after 50 years the rulers followed the same colonial policies of the British Rulers. The conference was a major achievement .I t dealt with all aspects from Democratic Rights to anti Imperialist, to revolutionary Peasant Struggles, Working Class Struggles and Nationality Struggles. Speakers from all Democratic Walks of life participated .Of great significance were the talks of the revolutionary peasant Struggles. Wrong trends were exhibited like participation of Non Governmental Organisations, wrongly upholding nationality movements, but such an all India gathering with a revolutionary perspective was historic, in front of my eyes. It was a tribute to the Peoples war and Party Unity Groups. One complementary aspect of the A.I.P.R.F was that it took several people into it’s struggle who were not direct participants in the revolutionary movements of Dandkaranya, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar but were participants in democratic struggles against imperialism.Eg The opposing of the Narmada Project in Gujarat, Farmers protest against Globalisation in Karnataka and Punjab Etc.The formation of the Forum is major step in All India Perspective to the revolutionary Movement. Two years ago The All India Peoples Resistance forum merged with the Struggle for Resistance Forum to merge into the Revolutionary Democratic Front. Further mass protests have been led against repression,globalisation If they could extricate themselves from their wrong trends it may not be a long time before the India New Democratic Revolution would emerge. It is of historic significance that the movement led by the constituent organizations of the C.P.I.Maoist could survive and lead a mass movement for such a considerable period from the onslaught of the State.The manner in which they have combated the stae repression in different junctures through organizing people’s court or famine raids was remarkableas well as their protests in term of armed actions or mass protests. .The C.P.I. (Maoist) is a legacy of that and continues to keep the Red Spark alight.Their experience will be written in the annals of International Communist History.
By Qurbani