Treachery of Indian Communists

In the recent all-party meet, while the political leaders across the party lines were supporting the Indian Government in its conflict management against the Chinese, there were two invitees who played different tunes: Sitaram Yechury and D. Raja; both of these Communist leaders were silent on solidarity display, but retreated the Panchsheel principles, Indo-China friendship and blamed the US for the whole plot. This stance of the communists was not something new. Historically, they have been involved in statements and activities which have been contrary to the interest of India. A glance to their past gives a fair idea about the nature of their involvements.

Based on the ideology of Marxism and widely influenced by Lenin, SV Ghate led the foundation of the Communist Party Of India(CPI) in 1925. The demand of the CPI was not only to get freedom from Britisher’s imperialist but to also overthrow the capitalist bourgeois in India adopting all means of violent methods going against the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi of non-violence.

But when Russia became allies of Britain against Nazi Germany in July 1942, CPI was legalized which earlier was fighting the British Imperialist[1]. Communists had started to isolate themselves from the mainstream of national life as well as of politics and started looking at the British rule as a friendly force since the communists’ fatherland Soviet Russia became an ally of Britain[2]. But CPI was politically sidelined as it was against the Quit India Movement.

After a few days, CPI under the leadership of BT Randive who was the General Secretary of CPI started agitating against the capitalists and questioning the independence of India stating that this freedom was fake (yeh azadi jhooti hai). They further argued that the situation in India is apt for the armed revolution.

With Mao Tze-tung, chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) coming in power in China on sep.30, 1949, one faction of CPI had shifted its focus from USSR to China and started copying the path of Mao. By 1959, CCP had begun its strenuous attempts to strengthen its influence throughout the world communist movement and so on the Indian communist.

By the 1960s, the conflict between Moscow’s Communist Party Of the Soviet Union(CPSU) and Chinese CCP was open to the world. The left faction within CPI was strongly in support of CCP, whereas the right faction was still taking orders from CPSU. By the end of 1961, the CPI had reached a point wherein the right-wing of the party was openly criticizing the CCP and was in return being criticized by CCP. The left-wing on the other hand was publishing statements in support of the Chineses line on Nehru. It was not only censoring but also sometimes even boycotting the central party organ for its anti-Chinese statements[3].

But when the rift in the relation of China and India occurred, CPI also faced rift among its members. The leftist faction of CPI was giving much more importance to ideology than the interest of the nation.

CPI leader EMS Namboodiripad was not ready to believe that China is an aggressor and chose to uphold the cause of China and went even a step further by portraying India as an aggressor[4]. Namboodiripad stated:

“We are not prepared to become blind to the reality that it was the class policy of the […] ruling classes of our country that made them allies of the Tibetan counter-revolutionaries, thus initiating the process of deterioration in the India-China relations. We were and are not prepared to give up our view that the responsibility for the Chinese offensive of October, 1962, should be shared also by the Indian ruling classes who adopted a very provocative attitude in the weeks preceeding [sic] the Chinese onslaught.”

Jyoti Basu at a public rally in Calcutta, after the war got over, had proclaimed that "China can't be the aggressor". Many of the party members blamed Indian leadership's intransigence on the boundary dispute and its provocation for the war.

Tushar Kanti Roy, a veteran of the 'pro-Chinese faction' went a step further by saying in the party that, "we never believed China would like to annex land from our country".

Shreepad Amrit Dange a CPI leader, on the other hand, disagreed with the Namboodripad and was supporting the cause of India.

This forced the Indian govt. to threw several communist leaders behind the bars. To blunt the campaign of accusing comrades of being Chinese agents, VS Achutyananda mooted the idea of donating blood for jawans to which other comrades cracked him down[5].

These differences within the party led to the division of CPI into CPI and CPI-M in 1964. It is said that on 6th Nov. 1961 Indian leftist members of the National Council had conferred with Basavapunniah and to have agreed with his judgement that CPI could no longer be held together, and must break after the 1962 elections. Those who were pro -Chinese left the parent party and formed the new party named Communist Of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and those who were supporting the cause of India stayed in the parent party itself.

Though India retained its independence from Britishers on 15th Aug. 1947, some sections of people's representatives in India were still taking orders from other nations like the Soviet Union and China. They were not only taking orders and following their ideologies but also were reporting the development of their actions in India to them. The role of leftist faction of CPI during the India-China war was not less than of a traitor.

"A nation can survive its fools and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within." ~ Marcus Tullius Cicero

{Author Archana Sharma is a third-year law student at VSLLS, GGSIPU}

[1] AG Noorani, "of quit India, Nehru &CPI split”,Frontline, 13.01.2012.

[2] Rudraangshu Mukherjee, ”the red blunders:the communists have consistently betrayed national interest”, The Telegraph, 21.08.07.

[3] CIA, ”the CPI and the Sino-Soviet dispute”,7.02.1962, realesed may 2007.

[4] Rudraangshu Mukherjee, ”the red blunders:the communists have consistently betrayed national interest”, The Telegraph, 21.08.07.

[5] Shaju Philip, "During China war, comrades cracked down on VS for saying let’s give blood to Jawans”, IE Archieve, 14.07.2009.