CPM meet: Kannur delegates question Pinarayi Vijayan, M V Govindan’s role in poll loss

Kozhikode: The CPM’s extended state committee meeting has put former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and party state secretary M V Govindan under pressure, with delegates from Kannur questioning whether the party’s top leadership should also take responsibility for its crushing defeat in the recent Assembly election.

The criticism emerged during discussions on the draft rectification report presented by Govindan on the first day of the three-day meeting on Sunday.

Kannur delegates questioned the report’s emphasis on shortcomings among party workers and lower-level committees, arguing that crucial decisions were taken at the state leadership level and that responsibility for the electoral setback could not be placed largely on the rank and file.

Delegates from Kollam also raised similar concerns.

The discussions have therefore brought the roles of Vijayan and Govindan under scrutiny, although the criticism was not framed entirely as direct personal attacks.

Questions over leadership decisions

Delegates questioned whether the party leadership had adequately addressed repeated warning signs before the latest electoral defeat.

They also criticised what they described as growing personality-centred politics and parliamentary ambitions among senior leaders, arguing that these trends had weakened the organisation during its prolonged period in power.

The delegates further raised concerns over what they saw as different standards being applied to senior leaders and ordinary party workers, with leaders close to the top leadership allegedly receiving greater protection from criticism.

Candidate selection also came under discussion.

The omission of the Taliparamba candidature controversy from the draft report was reportedly questioned, while the decision to shift K K Shailaja to another constituency and the handling of A N Shamseer’s candidature were also raised.

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Vijayan, Govindan face questions over accountability

The criticism effectively questioned whether the leadership was attempting to make lower-level organisational units responsible for a defeat stemming from decisions taken at the top.

Delegates also pointed to the erosion of the CPM’s traditional vote base, declining active membership and weakening support from mass organisations.

The party’s inability to maintain direct contact with people and communicate its political position effectively was cited as another major weakness.

The draft report’s reference to central agency and Enforcement Directorate investigations involving Vijayan and his family as a major challenge for the party also reportedly failed to find much support among delegates.

Instead, the discussions indicated that many delegates viewed the party’s immediate problems as internal and believed the leadership needed to address them.

Jayarajan: Setback was across Kerala

Senior CPM leader E P Jayarajan, however, sought to put the criticism in a broader context, saying the electoral setback was not confined to Kannur.

“Right now, we are not here to examine the rights and wrongs of this election. The issue faced by the party in Kerala includes all districts. It is not just Kannur; we faced a setback in all districts. That setback is a general outcome,” he told reporters in Kozhikode on Monday.

Jayarajan said the extended state committee meeting was aimed at understanding why the unexpected defeat occurred and deciding how to correct the party’s shortcomings.

He defended criticism and self-criticism as an essential part of the Communist movement.

“A party without criticism would not be a Communist Party,” Jayarajan said.
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Crucial second day

The three-day extended state committee meeting began on Sunday and concludes on Tuesday.

The discussions come after a series of electoral setbacks for the CPM-led Left following its 2021 Assembly victory, culminating in a major defeat in the latest Assembly polls.

The focus now is on whether the criticism from Kannur and other districts will translate into a broader examination of leadership decisions and accountability, or remain part of the party’s traditional rectification process.