Daijiworld Media Network - Kochi
Kochi, Mar 8: Former senior CPI-M leader C P John launched a scathing attack on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, accusing him of transforming the party into an extension of the government and reducing the administration to a mere arm of the CPI-M.
John, who parted ways with the CPI-M in the mid-1980s along with his mentor, the late firebrand leader M V Raghavan, criticized Vijayan for consolidating absolute control over both the party and the government.
Raghavan was expelled from CPI-M after an internal power struggle over his proposal to align with the Kerala Congress and the IUML—an idea that went against the party’s official stance.
"One watches with bated breath what is unfolding at the ongoing four-day CPI-M state conference, which has been completely hijacked by Vijayan. CPI-M leaders in Kerala today have been politically castrated—everything the party once stood for has been discarded under Vijayan, who has taken over both the government and the party," John said.
At the conference, Vijayan introduced a series of proposals that contradict the party’s traditional ideology. These include imposing a cess on government services, implementing major changes in the education sector, and seeking private sector involvement to revive struggling public sector enterprises.
"What is happening at this conference is unprecedented. Instead of discussing the party’s future, the focus has shifted to government programs. Vijayan, who already controls the government, is now tightening his grip on the party as well," John added.
Drawing a parallel with CPI-M’s fate in West Bengal, John warned that Kerala's unit is heading in the same direction.
"This is exactly what happened in West Bengal, and we all know where the party stands there now. With the state conference rubber-stamping Vijayan’s proposals without a murmur, no party worker dares to raise their voice, fearing the consequences," he said.
John, who now leads the Communist Marxist Party, is a key ally of the Congress-led UDF and is regarded as one of its main strategists.