Change of Guard, Change in Focus The 18th congress of the CPI(M) was significant not merely because of the election of a new general secretary. The election of Prakash Karat should suggest a shift in the tactical line pursued by the party since the 14th congress at Chennai in 1992. The mandate of the Chennai congress (where Harkishen Singh Surjeet replaced E M S Namboodiripad as general secretary) paved the way for the CPI(M) to play an active role in forging political alliances and coalition governments. It was on that basis that Surjeet involved himself in building alliances, including the United Front governments of 1996-1998. And the CPI(M) general secretary
To read the full text Login
New 3 Month Subscription
to Digital Archives at
₹826for India
$50for overseas users
Comments
EPW looks forward to your comments. Please note that comments are moderated as per our comments policy. They may take some time to appear. A comment, if suitable, may be selected for publication in the Letters pages of EPW.