100 years of CPI: ‘AI wasn’t there during Marx, Lenin’s time … Communists have to face it … cope with changes’

* Looking back at the journey of a century, what are the lessons for the CPI?

It has been one of struggles and sacrifices. We were the first to give the call for poorna swaraj (complete independence). We are at the forefront of the struggle. It is part of history. We are proud that our party was at the frontline fighting for independence. Our party was the first to reach out to all sections of the people. While CPI was formed in 1925, the AITUC (All India Trade Union Congress) was formed in 1920 to organise the working class. In 1936, we formed the All India Kisan Sabha, reaching out to the peasantry. The All India Students’ Federation was also formed in the same year. The first session in Lucknow was addressed by Jawaharlal Nehru. We formed the Indian People’s Theatre Association and the Progressive Writers’ Association in the same year so that we could mobilise the intelligentsia.

* But a year after Independence, the CPI, then under B T Ranadive as general secretary, concluded that independence was a sham and real freedom had not been achieved …

When the country was liberated, there was a view that we should continue the struggle. That this independence should be a genuine one. That was the time when Congress banned the party. The BTR line came about, whether to participate in elections or to continue our struggle, all those issues were debated. Finally, the party took a stand that colonial rule had ended and it should participate in elections.

* While the CPI marks its centenary, electorally, it is at its lowest. Not just the CPI, the Left as a whole. How do you see that challenge?

I agree. In the first elections, our party was the main Opposition in Parliament. Later on, when coalition governments emerged, whether it was the one led by V P Singh or the United Front government in the 1990s and the United Progressive Alliance, our party and the Left played an important role. But we have suffered setbacks … all said and done, parliamentary democracy means fighting elections, winning elections, political power and having a reasonable presence.  But in the new era, the Left has suffered and will have to understand this and think about how to improve its presence in elected bodies, right from village panchayats to Parliament.

* But why is the Left suffering in this new era?

The Left has suffered due to some splits. The major split in 1964 that led to the formation of the CPI(M),  the second split in the late 1960s that led to the emergence of the CPI(ML) and there were further splits later.

* But from 1977 onwards till 2011, the Left was in power in West Bengal. From 1993 to 2018, it ruled Tripura. It governed Kerala several times. In 2004, the Left registered its best performance in the Lok Sabha polls. So even after the splits, the Left as a whole was a major player. Its electoral collapse is a recent phenomenon.

We are all committed to Marxist ideology and Leninist philosophy.  But how to apply Marxist-Leninist positions and ideology to Indian realities is important. In an India where economic inequalities, social inequality, class divisions, discrimination, caste-based exploitation, and patriarchy still exist, where the means of production are in the hands of certain crony capitalists. Workers and farmers are wealth creators, but wealth is not in their hands. Dr B R Ambedkar had spoken about the annihilation of castes. Communists will have to understand that also. Economic reforms and political reforms will have no meaning unless you ensure the annihilation of the caste system.

* Isn’t what you said an ideal system for a Communist party to grow? 

It is Despite all these things, why we have not grown is an issue that needs to be addressed.

* If you think the Left can address these challenges better than any other party, why is it not able to? Does it not have the language to connect with people?

One should understand that it is a new era, globally too. How to explain the emergence of (US President Donald) Trump, for instance. Americans used to talk about a free society, but look at what Trump is saying. When people suffer from inequality and injustice, they should move closer to Communism. Despite the electoral decline of the Communists, we are still relevant ideologically and politically. We also keep talking about the unification of the Communist movement. It is a historic necessity. This is a new era. Not only export of capital, export of knowledge, export of high technology (but also) Artificial Intelligence (AI) … Communists will have to cope with the changes and be part of the changes. This is what we are discussing, we are thinking.

* Can you elaborate?

In the production process, there are changes. AI was not there at the time of Marx or Lenin. We have to face AI. It influences the forces of production, production relations, and profit-making. This is one change. Then, ideologically and politically, the values. Consumerism is affecting family and societal values. In such a situation, we need to analyse and understand how to win the minds of the people because the RSS now simply raises the issue of religion, Hindu Rashtra, etc. So, winning the minds of the people, how to present an ethical way of life, that is a task. All Communists must emerge as role models. We must have compassion for all human beings. So it is a long-drawn-out struggle. Ideological struggle against the RSS on one hand and political struggle on the other. To move forward, there is a need to unite all secular and democratic forces and unite Left forces.