Talking Numbers

With old guards Harkishen Singh Surjeet and Jyoti Basu opting out of the politburo on Thursday, the CPM leadership is without its founding fathers for the first time in 44 years

9 is the number of members who formed the first politburo. P. Sundarayya, M. Basavapunniah, E.M.S. Namboodiripad, A.K. Gopalan, B.T. Ranadive, P. Ramamurthi, Pramode Dasgupta, Jyoti Basu and Harkishen Singh Surjeet. Surjeet and Basu are the only members to have 8220;retired8221; but then they had the longest innings.

15 members in the present politburo.

87 is the number of members in the CPM Central Committee