KANNUR: The discussions and debates that took place in the 23rd Party Congress of the CPI(M) at Kannur could be described in one word. Oxymoron!
Sitaram Yechury, the party general secretary, in his address inaugurating the delegates’ session on April 6 declared Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India, as a dictator. Yechury also charged that there was no freedom of expression in India under the BJP regime at the Centre. “Narendra Modi does not allow other persons to make comments about anything. He wants the whole country to listen to what he says,” added the JNU educated Yechury. He also alleged that Modi is a dictator and does not allow any kind of dissidence in the country.
The speech by Yechury was widely reported by all the media in the country. Whenever Yechury opens his mouth, the media in the country go gaga. But what the comrades in the media forget is that despite these allegations by the party commissar, the newspapers, TV channels, news portals (the digital media), and all periodicals prominently publish the accusation and charges against Modi. You open any newspapers, magazines, TV channels and portals, and you will see only anti-Narendra Modi campaign. If what Yechury and others tell is true, how come these anti-Modi campaigns hit the front pages as well as prime time in news channels?
No authoritarian governments would allow the publication and airing of anti-government news. If one goes through newspapers like The Hindu, The New Indian Express, The Telegraph, The Statesman and others what catches the attention is the allegations and accusations against Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and the RSS. The editorials, the opinionated articles and letters to the editor columns are selectively jampacked with charges against Modi, Shah and RSS. One is yet to come across a single incident of the government at the Centre taking action against these publications specializing in spreading fake news.
Compare this to what happened during the days of internal emergency and even during the regime of Rajiv Gandhi as Prime Minister. Indira Gandhi ensured that all newspapers and periodicals publish reports and articles cleared by the censoring officer. Since the day emergency was declared (25th June 1975) till March 1977 when it was lifted, the entire opposition was nowhere to be seen. The Communist Party of India was the only political party that was featured in the media during the days of internal emergency and that was because the party was singing paeans to Indira Gandhi. C Achutha Menon, the CPI leader continued to remain the chief minister of Kerala only with the support extended by the Congress. Poor Menon will always feign illness when it was time for him to attend meetings convened by the Prime Minister and it was K Karunakaran, the home minister and de facto chief minister, who would attend the meetings in Delhi!
The allegation that there is no freedom of speech and expression under the Modi regime began immediately after the results of the 2014 Lok Sabha election were announced and has been continuing ever since. The Communists and the “official” intellectuals sing in chorus that there is no freedom of expression in India. That’s why the best word with which we could describe the Party Congress remains Oxymoron. It may be a strange coincidence that the CPI(M) and the CPI which enjoy secret liaison with the Indian National Congress have their meetings too named after the paramour- Party Congress.
Wasn’t it possible for them to name their triennial gathering as All India Conference of the Marxists or the CPIs? The name Party Congress indicates that the CPI(M) and the CPI can never survive without the Congress Party.
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