The Central Organising Committee, Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Party Unity, more commonly known as CPI(ML) Party Unity or simply 'Party Unity', was a communist party in India 1982-1998.

Narayan Sanyal (politician) Narayan Sanyal (died 17 April 2017) commonly known as Bijoy da and Naveen Prasad was a Maoism, Maoist ideologue and a Politburo member of the Communist Party of India (Maoist). He was one of the earliest comrade of Naxal leader Charu Majumdar and ...

alias Naveen Prasad was the general secretary of the party. ''Party Unity'' was the official organ of the party. CPI(ML) Party Unity was one of the predecessors of the Communist Party of India (Maoist).Menon, Nivedita, and Aditya Nigam.
Power and Contestation: India Since 1989
'. London tc. Zed Books, 2007. p. 123 The activity of CPI(ML) Party Unity was concentrated in central Bihar; the districts of Jehanabad,

Gaya Gaya may refer to: Geography Czech Republic *Gaya (German and Latin), Kyjov (Hodonín District), a town Guinea * Gaya or Gayah, a town India *Gaya, India, a city in Bihar **Gaya Airport *Bodh Gaya, a town in Bihar near Gaya *Gaya district, Bi ...

, Aurangabad,

Palamu Palamu district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state, India. It was formed in 1892. The administrative headquarter of the district is Medininagar (formerly DaltonGanj), situated on the Koel River. History The Palamu district ha ...

Nalanda Nalanda (, ) was a renowned ''mahavihara'' (Buddhist monastic university) in ancient Magadha (modern-day Bihar), India.Nawada Nawada is a city and a municipality in Bihar, India. It is also the headquarters of the Nawada district. It is the headquarters of the subdivision of the same name, lying on both sides of the Khuri River( also known as Sakri river in some part ...

.Nedumpara, Jose J.
Political Economy and Class Contradictions: A Study
'. New Delhi: Anmol Publications, 2004. p. 116 The party was also present in West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab.

Origins

The party was founded in 1982, through the mergers of CPI(ML) Unity Organisation of Naveen Prasad (Bihar) and Bhowani Roy Chowdhury (West Bengal) and the COC, CPI(ML) faction led by M. Appalasuri.''People's March''.
30 years of Naxalbari — An Epic of Heroic Struggle and Sacrifice
' CPI(ML) Unity Organisation had been founded in 1978 by a group of Naxalites from the Jehanabad-Palamu area, that had been released from prison in 1977.Clark-Decès, Isabelle, and Christophe Guilmoto.
A Companion to the Anthropology of India
'. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell, 2011. p. 322 The Central Organising Committee, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) had been formed by some elements of the erstwhile CPI(ML). The COC, CPI(ML) upheld the legacy of

Charu Majumdar Charu Majumdar (Bengali: চারু মজুমদার; 15 May 1918 – 28 July 1972), popularly known as CM, was a Communist leader from India, and founder and General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist). Born in ...

but was ready to retain a critical attitude to some aspects of Majumdar's role.

Political orientation

The party advocated agrarian revolution and protracted people's war. CPI(ML) Party Unity conducted armed struggle, advocating attacks on upper castes as a means of mobilizing Dalits for agrarian reform. The party denounced participation in elections. A party congress was held in 1987. The congress issued the following statement regarding the tasks of the party: "We are tackling the steadily increasing armed onslaughts of the state, through mass resistance. But gradually the squads too will have to come forward to participate in this resistance. At the phase of confiscating all lands of the landlords and on the eve of building up the guerilla zone, the activities of the squads will be the main aspect of the people's resistance against the armed attacks of the state."

Class warfare

The party had armed 'Red Squads' operating in Bihar. CPI(ML) Party Unity was involved in violent confrontations with private armies (''senas'') of landlords.''

Frontline Front line refers to the forward-most forces on a battlefield. Front line, front lines or variants may also refer to: Books and publications * ''Front Lines'' (novel), young adult historical novel by American author Michael Grant * ''Frontlines ...

''.
The Jehanabad carnage
''. Vol. 14 :: No. 25 :: 13 - 26 December 1997 On 1 December 1997

Ranvir Sena The Ranvir Sena is a militia functioning as a landlord group, mainly based in the state of Bihar, India. The group was formed by Bhumihar landlords in 1994, with the aim to counter the influence of various left-wing militants, Naxalite groups ...

attacked the CPI(ML) Party Unity stronghold Lakshmanpur-Bathe, killing 63 lower caste people.

Mass struggles

CPI(ML) Unity Organisation had launched a mass organisation, the

Mazdoor Kisan Sangram Samiti Mazdoor Kisan Sangram Samiti ( hi, मजदूर किसान संग्राम समिति, 'Worker-Peasant Struggle Association') was a mass organisation in Bihar, India. MKSS was founded in 1981 by Dr. Vinayan, Arvind Ji and other ...

('Worker-Peasant Struggle Association'), together with Dr. Vinayan (an ex-socialist mass leader). CPI(ML) Party Unity effectively functioned as the armed wing of MKSS. CPI(ML) Party Unity managed to get the Bhoomi Sena (a Kurmi caste paramilitary outfit) to formally surrender to MKSS.

Omvedt, Gail Gail Omvedt (2 August 1941 – 25 August 2021) was an American-born Indian sociologist and human rights activist. She was a prolific writer and published numerous books on the anti-caste movement, Dalit politics, and women's struggles in India. ...

.
Reinventing Revolution: New Social Movements and the Socialist Tradition in India. Socialism and social movements
'. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe, 1993. p. 60 In 1986 MKSS was banned. Eventually there was a rupture between Dr. Vinayan and the party, and Dr. Vinayan's MKSS faction denounced the party in 1987.Nedumpara, Jose J.
Political Economy and Class Contradictions: A Study
'. New Delhi: Anmol Publications, 2004. p. 117 CPI(ML) Party Unity launched the Mazdoor Kisan Sangram Parishad as its new peasant front. Other mass fronts of CPI(ML) Party Unity included Lok Sangram Morcha ('People's Struggle Front'), Jan Mukti Parishad ('People's Liberation Council') and Bihar Nari Sangathan ('Bihar Women's Organisation'). Jan Mukti Parishad organised land seizures in Bihar, the organisation itself claimed to have redistributed 5,000 acres of land in the state. Through its land seizure struggles, CPI(ML) Party Unity became associated with its slogan ''jameen jabtee, fasal jabtee'' ('Seize land, seize crops').

Confrontation and unity

CPI(ML) Party Unity frequently clashed with other leftwing groups in Bihar. It fought over control of the Kurtha and Makdampur areas of Jehanabad district with

CPI(ML) Liberation A consumer price index (CPI) is a price index, the price of a weighted average market basket of consumer goods and services purchased by households. Changes in measured CPI track changes in prices over time. Overview A CPI is a statistica ...

. CPI(ML) Liberation claimed that CPI(ML) Party Unity had killed 82 of its followers, whilst CPI(ML) Party Unity claimed CPI(ML) Liberation had killed 65 of its cadres.''Rediff''.
The Badlands Of Bihar
' 50 people were killed in clashes between CPI(ML) Party Unity and the

Maoist Communist Centre The Maoist Communist Centre (MCC) was one of the largest two armed Maoist groups in India, and fused with the other, the People's War Group in September 2004, to form the Communist Party of India (Maoist). Dakshin Desh When the Communist Party ...

. Conflict between CPI(ML) Party Unity and MCC was most intense in areas of Gaya district; Tekari, Konch and Belaganj.Nedumpara, Jose J.
Political Economy and Class Contradictions: A Study
'. New Delhi: Anmol Publications, 2004. p. 268 However, there were also moves towards unity between the competing factions. During the 1980s, there was cooperation between the MKSS and CPI(ML) Liberation in the struggle against Bhoomi Sena and state repression. The two parties jointly founded Daman Virodhi Sanyukt Morcha ('United Anti-Repression Front'). After the Arwal massacre of 1986, the two groups organised a historic ''

gherao Gherao, meaning "encirclement", is a word which denotes a tactic used by labour activists and union leaders in India; it is similar to picketing. Usually, a group of people would surround a politician or a government building until their demands ...

'' outside the Bihar Legislative Assembly.'' The Times of India''.
Sena men on key PW posts, says CPI (ML)
' CPI(ML) Liberation broke all links to CPI(ML) Party Unity in 1988, after two massacres committed by CPI(ML) Party Unity in Jehanabad district in which 30 CPI(ML) Liberation followers were killed.

.
Experiences of Engaging with the Maoists
' In 1993 the All India People's Resistance Forum (AIPRF) was founded, a legal organization. AIPRF was co-sponsored by CPI(ML) Party Unity, MCC and the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) People's War, and functioned as a centre of coordination of activities amongst middle-class constituencies for the three groups. On 11 August 1998 CPI(ML) Party Unity merged with CPI(ML) People's War. The unified party retained the name CPI(ML) People's War. The merger was the result of a five-year-long process of negotiations between the two parties. Through the merger with CPI(ML) Party Unity, CPI(ML) People's War gained a foothold in northern India.Narula, Smita.
Broken People Caste Violence against India's "Untouchables"
'. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1999. p. 47

References