Sonia govt146;s PBMs

Harkishen Singh Surjeet
When at sea, he Is the Old Man

Arguably the most energetic 88-year-old in the country, Surjeet joined the freedom struggle when he was just 15. He later joined the CPI and was active in the kisan movement in Punjab. He is one of the two surviving members of the first nine-member PB of the CPIM, after the parent CPI split in 1964. Best known nationally for his negotiating abilities with sundry political players and parties.

Jyoti Basu
One for the records

Fit at 90, Basu holds the record of being the country8217;s longest-serving chief minister. Turned to the Left as a student in England and returned to join the CPI in Bengal. Was active in the trade union movement and a key opposition MLA for years. One of the nine top leaders who founded the CPIM. Chief Minister of West Bengal from 1977 to 2000.

E. Balanandan
Trade union leader

Joined the communist movement in Kerala as a youth and became a trade union activist. Rose to become a powerful trade union leader in the state and till recently, was the all India chief of the CITU.

P. Ramachandran
Theory in action

Born in Kannur district in 1925, P. Ramachandran, or PRC, participated in the freedom movement as a student in 1942. Moved to Madras and became the general secretary of the Madras Students8217; Organisation. Was arrested in early 1947 and released the day before Independence. Became a full time Communist party worker, concentrating on workers and peasant struggles in Trichy till 1978. Joined the CPIM after the split. Moved from Madras to Delhi in 1989 and became a member of the PB in 1992. Known for his grasp on theory and his agile Marxist mind.

R. Umanath
Decades at centre

Three years older than PRC, Umanath was born in Calicut but moved to Madras as a student. Arrested in 1940 in the Madras Communist Conspiracy Case and convicted for three years. After Independence, worked in the trade union front and was elected MP twice from Puddukottai in the 1960s. Has been a member of the central committee for over three decades.

Prakash Karat
The Young Guard

Became attracted to the Left movement during college days in Madras in the 1960s; went for further studies to the University of Edinburgh; and founded the Students8217; Federation of India SFI in JNU in the early 8217;70s. The leading member of the 8216;Young Guard8217; that was groomed to take over leadership by the founders of the party, 56-year-old Karat has emerged as the key ideologue of the CPIM today.

S. Ramachandran Pillai
Kisan Sabha leader

A member of the erstwhile Young Guard who was brought to the party centre in New Delhi from his home state of Kerala. SRP, as he is known, is also a leader of the Kisan Sabha the peasant wing of the party and served two terms as member of the Rajya Sabha.

M.K. PANDHE
The doctor activist

Starting out as a trade union activist among textile workers of Solapur in Maharashtra in 1948, Pandhe did his doctorate on the Structure and Functioning of TUs from Pune University. After submitting his thesis, he joined the AITUC in 1958 and moved to the CITU when it was formed in 1970. Currently president of CITU, he is among the foremost trade union leaders in the country today.

Manik Sarkar
Holding fort in N-E

Coming from a very humble background, Manik Sarkar has been a communist activist since his early youth. Now in his 50s, he became one of the youngest chief ministers in the country when he succeeded veteran tribal leader Dasarath Deb in Tripura over a decade ago. Despite the violent ethnic conflict in the border state, Sarkar has managed to retain power in this Red bastion of the north-east.

V.S. Achuthanandan
Organisation man

The anti-thesis of the affable E.K. Nayanar, dour and reticent Achutha-nandan is a veteran of many peasants8217; struggles and the organisational 8216;8216;strong man8217;8217; of Kerala. Almost became CM twice but when his party won, he lost. If the LDF repeats its spectacular Lok Sabha results in the assembly polls, could be Kerala8217;s next CM.

Anil Biswas
The editor, teacher

A member of the erstwhile 8216;8216;youthful trio8217;8217; that includes Biman Basu and Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, the soft-spoken Biswas also came up through the students8217; movement. But more than mass struggles, his forte was ideology. As the man in charge of party literature and editor of Ganashakti for many years, he groomed a generation of students in the post-1977 era. Holds the all important post of state party secretary.

E.K. Nayanar
Man of the masses

Now ailing at the AIIMS, Nayanar is one of the most popular mass leaders of the party in Kerala. Not quite an 8216;8216;intellectual Marxist8217;8217; in the EMS mould, his rustic jokes and style of speech endeared him to the common people of the state. Served as chief minister of Kerala for two terms, first in 1987 and then in 1995.

Koratala Satyanarayana
The Andhra veteran

In his late 70s, this veteran from Andhra Pradesh shares with many PB members of his generation a similar trajectory. Drawn to the freedom movement as a student, he participated in the famous Telengana struggle in the late 1940s. Later became involved with the kisan movement, and served as state secretary of Andhra Pradesh.

Sitaram Yechury
The baby genius

Nicknamed 8216;baby of the Polit Bureau8217;, Yechury was less than 40 when he became a member of the august body in 1992. The all-India higher secondary topper and St Stephen8217;s alumni was the SFI8217;s best known face in JNU through the 1970s and is now the CPIM8217;s most telegenic face. Known for his knowledge on economics, tireless travelling, and oratorical skills in Hindi, English, Telugu, and even Bengali.

Biman Basu
Married to the cause

Groomed by the legendary Bengal party boss Promode Dasgupta PDG, Biman Basu became a Communist activist early in life. Came up through the turbulent students8217; movement in the 1960s. A bachelor who has always lived in the party commune, Basu is famous for his formidable organisational skills.

Pinarayi Vijayan
Malabar heights

Hailing from the communist stronghold of North Malabar, Vijayan was a student leader who quickly rose through the echelons of the CPIM in Kerala. Made a mark as electricity minister in the Nayanar cabinet. Anil Biswas8217;s counterpart in Kerala8212;i.e. the all-powerful state party secretary.

Buddhadeb bhattacharya
Practical protege

He is West Bengal8217;s poet-chief minister who had the tough job of stepping into Jyoti Basu8217;s shoes8212;and he has done well in them. An alumni of the Presidency College of Kolkata, Bhattacharya has wedded Marxism with literature since his days in the youth movement. He has penned plays and poems, translated Mayakovsky and Kafka, and is now engaged in the tougher task of wedding reforms and Left politics.