Following the recent electoral defeat, severe criticism broke out against Pinarayi Vijayan in the CPIM Alappuzha District Secretariat meeting held on Sunday. A strong demand emerged from the committee stating that Pinarayi Vijayan should not continue as the Leader of the Opposition. Members expressed deep concern over whether Vijayan would be effective in countering the moves of the ruling front and leading future political agitations, especially with a significantly reduced number of MLAs in the opposition rows. The secretariat warned that his continuation in the post would cause further damage to the party’s image and urged the leadership to find an alternative face.
The party’s State Secretary, M V Govindan, also faced heavy flak during the heated deliberations. Several members pointed out that many statements made by the state secretary during the election period lacked political depth and fell down to the standards of a local branch secretary. The committee concluded that immediate and thorough course corrections are required within the organization. Members warned that if the party continues with its current functioning style, a return to power would be extremely difficult, and requested an urgent reorganization of the party’s State Committee. Senior leaders including V N Vasavan, Saji Cheriyan, C S Suajtha, and Thomas Isaac attended the meeting representing the higher committees.
Furthermore, the district secretariat openly blamed the leadership for its total failure in tackling the challenges posed by veteran leader G Sudhakaran. The meeting noted that the party failed to give timely replies to the criticisms raised against it and could not defend itself even in its traditional strongholds. Members pointed out that G Sudhakaran had started attacking the party publicly two years ago, and opined that instead of letting him leave on his own terms, the party leadership should have expelled him much earlier. (With input from MN)
For more details: Navamalayalam.com