Communist Party Of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation
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The Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation (CPI(ML)L) is a
communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
political party in India. The party is represented in
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
and
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
Legislative Assemblies. Since 2023, the party is also a member of the
INDIA India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
bloc. In Bihar, the party has significant base amongst the Extremely Backward Castes and the Schedule Castes. It was successful in mobilising Upper Backward Caste groups such as
Koeri The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri), also referred to as Kushwaha and more recently self-described as Maurya in several parts of northern India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional oc ...
s in some districts of central Bihar, prior to the rise of
Lalu Prasad Yadav Lalu Prasad (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997 with a brief interruption in 1995 and as the union minister for Railways from 2004 to 2009. He is the founder and president o ...
. The party faced existential crisis when a large section of its Koeri and Yadav support base defected to
Rashtriya Janata Dal The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav. The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
in 1990s. However, the ideological commitment of its cadre protected it from disintegration. It staged a comeback in politics after winning twelve seats in
Bihar Legislative Assembly The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the bicameral Bihar Legislature of the state of Bihar in India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is ...
in 2020 and by sending two of its members to
Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
in
2024 Indian general election General elections were held in Elections in India, India from 2024 elections in India, 19 April to 1 June 2024 in seven phases, to elect all List of constituencies of the Lok Sabha, 543 members of the Lok Sabha. Votes were counted and the res ...
s.


History

In 1973, the original
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) The Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) (CPI(ML)) was an Indian communist party formed by the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries (AICCCR) at a congress in Calcutta in 1969. The foundation of the party wa ...
split, with one group led by Sharma and another by Mahadev Mukherjee.
Vinod Mishra Vinod Mishra (24 March 1947 – 18 December 1998) was an Indian communist politician. Mishra served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation between 1975 and 1998. Early life and student activism Mi ...
initially belonged to Mukherjee's party, but he and the Burdwan Regional Committee broke with Mukherjee in September 1973. Mishra sought contact with the Sharma group, but the Burdwan Regional Committee was later divided and Mishra denounced the political line of Sharma (a critique, which amongst other things, called for the formation of open mass organizations, a move that almost constituted a heresy in the CPI (ML) movement at the time).Sen, Arindam.
The Life of Vinod Mishra
''
In 1974, Mishra came into contact with Subrata Dutta (Jauhar), a leader of armed struggle in the plain areas of
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
. On 28 July 1974 (the second death anniversary of
Charu Majumdar Charu Majumdar (15 May 1918 – 28 July 1972) was an Indian communist leader, and founder and General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist). Born into a progressive landlord family in Siliguri in 1918, he became a Commun ...
), a new party Central Committee was formed with Jauhar as General Secretary and Mishra and Swadesh Bhattacharya (Raghu) as members. The reorganized party became known as the 'anti-
Lin Biao Lin Biao ( zh, 林彪; 5 December 1907 – 13 September 1971) was a Chinese politician and Marshal of the People's Republic of China who was pivotal in the Chinese Communist Party, Communist Chinese Communist Revolution, victory during the Chines ...
' group (whilst the faction of Mahadev Mukherjee constituted the 'pro-Lin Biao' group). The anti-Lin Biao group became known as the CPIML Liberation.'' Frontline''.
The road from Naxalbari
''. Volume 22 - Issue 21, 8–21 October 2005
Mishra served as
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
secretary of the new party organization. Under Mishra's leadership new ''dalams'' (guerilla squads) were formed. In November 1975, Jauhar was killed during Lal Sena activities. Mishra became the new party General Secretary in a reorganized five-member Central Committee. Mishra organized a second party congress, held clandestinely in the rural areas of
Gaya district } Gaya district is one of the thirty-eight districts of the Indian state of Bihar. It was officially established on 3 October 1865. The district has a common boundary with the state of Jharkhand to the south. Gaya city is both the district he ...
in February 1976. The congress unanimously re-elected Mishra as General Secretary.


Reorientation and rectification

Mishra was the political architect of the process of re-orientation of CPIML Liberation. By 1976 the party had adopted a position that armed struggle would be combined with building a broad anti-
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
democratic front movement. The process was further elaborated through an internal rectification process initiated in late 1977. Party study circles and party schools were started from central to the block level of the party structure. The theory of two line tactics started to develop. In 1981, the party tried to unify the other splintered ML factions. The party organised a unity meeting with 13 ML factions to form a unified leading core. However, the initiative was a failure.


The IPF

In the early 1980s, CPIML Liberation began building an open non-party mass movement (in direct to the original policy of CPI (ML)), the
Indian People's Front The Indian People's Front (IPF) was a mass front organisation founded in Delhi between 24–26 April 1982. It was conceptualised by Vinod Mishra and it was operated as the open mass front of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liber ...
(founded in April 1982). Nagbhushan Patnaik became the president of IPF. The construction of IPF, through which the underground party could develop links to other democratic forces on the basis of a popular, democratic and patriotic programme, was based on interventions by Mishra. However, although Mishra broke with the dogmas of the early CPI (ML), he never renounced Charu Majumdar's legacy. Karat, Prakash.
Naxalism Today; At an Ideological Deadend[sic]
'. ''The Marxist'', Volume: 3, No. 1, January–March 1985
In the third party congress, it was decided that IPF will participate in parliamentary elections. In 1989, IPF's Rameshwar Prasad Rameshwar Prasad () is an Indian politician, belonging to the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation. He is a Central Committee member of CPI (ML) Liberation and the president of All India Agricultural Labourers Association ...
won the loksabha seat from Ara (Bhojpur district, India">Bhojpur). In 1990, IPF won seven seats from Bihar Legislative Assembly. Special initiatives taken for restructuring the party and open up. IPF hold its first rally on 8 October 1990 in Delhi. CPIML's mass base in the state of Bihar was among the members of Extremely Backward and Schedule Castes and it was initially unable to draw support for its activities from the Upper Backward Castes, upper backward castes. It was, however successful in mobilising the
Koeri The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri), also referred to as Kushwaha and more recently self-described as Maurya in several parts of northern India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional oc ...
s in the regions like
Arrah Arrah (also transliterated as Ara) is a city and a municipal corporation in Bhojpur district, India, Bhojpur district (formerly known as Shahabad district) in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the headquarters of Bhojpur district, India, Bhojpur ...
, Rohtas,
Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
and
Aurangabad Aurangabad (), officially renamed as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 2023, is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a ...
. This success remained temporary as with the formation of
Rashtriya Janata Dal The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav. The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
, the
Koeri The Koeri (spelt as Koiry or Koiri), also referred to as Kushwaha and more recently self-described as Maurya in several parts of northern India are an Indian non-elite caste, found largely in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, whose traditional oc ...
and
Yadav Yadavs are a grouping of non-elite, peasant-pastoral Quote: "The Yadavs were traditionally a low-to-middle-ranking cluster of pastoral-peasant castes that have become a significant political force in Uttar Pradesh (and other northern states l ...
support base of CPIML increasingly shifted its loyalty to the RJD. This was because plum posts in the party was offered by RJD to those detecting from the CPIML. During this period four legislators associated with
Indian People's Front The Indian People's Front (IPF) was a mass front organisation founded in Delhi between 24–26 April 1982. It was conceptualised by Vinod Mishra and it was operated as the open mass front of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liber ...
, the open mass organisation of CPIML defected to the RJD. These were Shri Bhagwan Singh Kushwaha, K.D Yadav, Umesh Singh and Suryadev Singh. However, the party was saved from complete ruin by the presence of top leadership which was ideologically committed and belonged to social groups such as non-Yadav Other Backward Castes.


The ASDC

In 1985, the party launched People's democratic Front (PDF) in
Karbi Anglong Karbi may refer to: Places * Karbi, Armenia * Karbi Anglong Plateau, an extension of the Indian Plate in Assam, India * Karbi Anglong district, a district of Assam, north-eastern India Other uses * Karbi people, an ethnic group of North-e ...
district of Assam which won a seat in state assembly. In 1987 PDF was transformed to Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC). A sustained mass movement by ASDC help it to sweep district council elections in 1989. In 1981, ASDC's Jayanta Rongpi became an MP in Parliament. In 1996, ASDC was able to send its five-member group in Assam assembly as MLA. In 1992, after the Fifth party congress (Held in Kolkata), the party comes out in the open from its underground status. Mishra was re-elected General Secretary of the party at the sixth congress of CPIML Liberation in
Varanasi Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.* * * * The city has a syncretic tradition of I ...
in October 1997.


Present

The CPIML(Liberation), led by Dipankar Bhattacharya is a surviving faction of the CPIML. Liberation has established legal overground structures (trade unions, student groups, peasant organisations etc.) and participates in elections. In the Lok Sabha elections in 1999 the party won 0.3% of the votes and one seat (the former ASDC-seat from
Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...
). In the 2004 elections the seat was lost, mainly due to a split within ASDC. As of 2016, the party has been able to send its representatives to the state legislative assemblies of
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
and
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
as well as the panchayats of Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Punjab. In November 2020, it won 12 seats in Bihar's election. The legislators elected in this election to Bihar Legislative Assembly are: In 2024, it was able to win two seats in from Bihar in Indian general election. The CPIMLL candidates,
Raja Ram Singh Kushwaha Raja Ram Singh or Raja Ram Singh Kushwaha, is an Indian politician based in Bihar, who was elected to Bihar Legislative Assembly twice, from Obra Assembly constituency in Aurangabad district. He is a member of Communist Party of India (Marxist ...
and
Sudama Prasad Sudama Prasad (born 2 February 1961) is an Indian politician, member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly who serves as a Member of Parliament in the 18th Lok Sabha from Arrah Lok Sabha constituency, Arrah. He was elected in the 2024 Indian general ...
were able to defeat union minister R. K. Singh in Arrah Lok Sabha constituency and
Upendra Kushwaha Upendra Kumar Singh, commonly known as Upendra Kushwaha (born 6 February 1960) is an Indian politician, and a former Member of Bihar Legislative Council and Bihar Legislative Assembly. He has also served as Minister of State for Human Resources ...
and Bhojpuri singer and actor
Pawan Singh Pawan Singh (popularly known as Powerstar) (born 5 January 1986) is an Indian politician, playback singer, actor, music composer, stage performer. He is known for his works in Bhojpuri Film Industry. He began his musical career by working be ...
in
Karakat Lok Sabha constituency Karakat is one of the 40 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Bihar state in eastern India. This constituency came into existence in 2008 as a part of the implementation of delimitation of parliamentary constituencies based on the recom ...
. In a report,
Dainik Bhaskar ''Dainik Bhaskar '' () is a Hindi-language daily newspaper in India which is owned by the Dainik Bhaskar Group. According to the World Association of Newspapers, it ranked fourth in the world by circulation in 2016 and per the Indian Audit ...
stated that the party is more strong than
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
in the state of Bihar, given its stellar performance in
2020 Bihar Legislative Assembly election The Bihar Legislative Assembly election was held in three phases through October–November to elect members to the Seventeenth Bihar Legislative Assembly. The term of the previous Sixteenth Legislative Assembly of Bihar ended on 29 November 20 ...
s and 2024 Indian general elections. The party has supported the government of
Nitish Kumar Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
and Tejaswi Yadav from outside after 2020 Bihar Legislative Assembly election, however, its face has always been of a mass organisation working for the cause of poor. Many a times, it was seen protesting against its own government outside and inside the house of legislative assembly. The party was also praised for its ground level work amongst the downtrodden section of society and for winning the elections with bare minimum resources, when other political parties relied on heavy funding from the corporate for their election expenses. CPIMLL has also showed significant presence in the regions such as Siwan and has been at the forefront in the fight against local landed magnates on the question of poor. It came into conflict with the gangster politician Mohammad Shahabuddin in the region, who was supported by local feudal elements. The Party has been served in the region by the influential local leaders such Ramesh Singh Kushwaha.


Publications

The English-language publication of the party is ''Liberation'', and thus the party is called CPIML Liberation. Apart from ''Liberation'', the party publishes a central Hindi weekly organ, ''Samkaleen Lokyuddh''. Some state party committees publish their own organs, like the weekly ''Ajker Deshabrati'' in
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
, ''Nabasphulinga'' in
Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...
, ''Teeppori'' in Tamil Nadu, ''Telugu Liberation'' in
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
, ''Kannada Liberation'' in
Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
, ''Samkali Lok Morcha'' in
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
, etc.


States


Bihar

The party has a longstanding conflict with the feudal landlords since the beginning of CPI (ML). Siwan, Bhojpur, Arrah are the strongholds of CPI (ML) movement. The communist movement in Bihar was founded by the comrade Jagdish Mahto, Rameshwar Ahir and Ramnaresh Ram in the Ekwaari village of Bhojpur. Traditionally, CPIML had a strong base between
Kushwaha Kushwaha (sometimes Kushvaha), is a community of the Indo-Gangetic Plain that has traditionally been involved in agriculture, including beekeeping. The term has been used to represent different sub-castes of the Kachhis, Kachhvahas, Koeris ...
s and
Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
s of Bihar.


Bihar Legislative Assembly Election

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
CPIML Liberation emerged as the third largest party in Bihar Legislative Assembly Election 2015. The party contested jointly along with CPI, CPI(M), RSP, Forward Bloc, and SUCI(C) as a third alternative to the
National Democratic Alliance The National Democratic Alliance (NDA; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Rāṣṭrīya Lokatāntrik Gaṭhabandhan'') is an Indian big tent Political group, multi-party political alliance, led by the country's biggest political party, the Bharatiya Janata Pa ...
and the Mahagathbandhan of
Lalu Prasad Yadav Lalu Prasad (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997 with a brief interruption in 1995 and as the union minister for Railways from 2004 to 2009. He is the founder and president o ...
and
Nitish Kumar Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...
. The party won the seats of Darauli,
Balrampur Balrampur is a town and a municipal board in Balrampur district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is situated on the bank of river Rapti and is the district headquarters of Balrampur district. History Balrampur town is in close vici ...
and Tarari each. The party has a vote percentage of 1.5% in the state. All the left parties together have a vote percentage of 3.59%.
2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
CPI(ML) Liberation contested the
2020 Bihar Legislative Assembly election The Bihar Legislative Assembly election was held in three phases through October–November to elect members to the Seventeenth Bihar Legislative Assembly. The term of the previous Sixteenth Legislative Assembly of Bihar ended on 29 November 20 ...
as part of the Mahagathbandhan, an alliance of the UPA and the leftist parties led by the
Rashtriya Janata Dal The Rashtriya Janata Dal ( RJD; translation: National People's Party) is an Indian political party, mainly based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Lalu Prasad Yadav. The party's support base has traditionally been Other ...
. The party secured 12 seats with a vote percentage of 3.16%, making it the fifth largest party in the
Bihar Legislative Assembly The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the bicameral Bihar Legislature of the state of Bihar in India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is ...
. However, the Mahagathbandhan lost the election to the rival
National Democratic Alliance The National Democratic Alliance (NDA; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Rāṣṭrīya Lokatāntrik Gaṭhabandhan'') is an Indian big tent Political group, multi-party political alliance, led by the country's biggest political party, the Bharatiya Janata Pa ...
. As a result of the election, the CPI(ML)L was recognised as a state party by the
Election Commission of India The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body established by Constitution of India, the Constitution of the Republic of India empowered to conduct free and fair elections in the Republic of India. It is headed by a Chief Ele ...
.


Jharkhand

Since the separation of Jharkhand from Bihar important places like Ranchi, Dhanbad, Giridih, Koderma, Jamtada and others have been field of work of the party. In Jharkhand the party is the representative of regional
adivasi The Adivasi (also transliterated as Adibasi) are heterogeneous tribal groups across the Indian subcontinent. The term is a recent invention from the 20th century and is now widely used as a self-designation by groups classified as Scheduled Tr ...
s who have conflicts with corporates and government against improper land seizure without proper rehabilitation. The party also has conflicts with the local coal mafias.


2014 state election

The party contested in cooperation with state left parties like Marxist Co-ordination Committee (MCC), CPI, and CPI(M) as an alternative to the BJP and INC led alliances. The party won the Dhanwar seat. The party got 1.5% of vote in the state. All the left parties together got 2.5% vote in the state.


2019 state election

The party gained the legislative assembly seat of
Bagodar Bagodar is a village in the Bagodar CD block in the Bagodar-Saria subdivision of the Giridih district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. Geography Location Bagodar is located at . Area overview Giridih district is a part of the Chota Nagpu ...
but lost the previous seat from Dhanwar.


Leadership

The current general secretary of the party is Dipankar Bhattacharya, first elected in 1998 after the passing of Vinod Mishra. The 11th party congress of CPIML Liberation, held in Patna, Bihar from 15 to 20 February 2023 elected a Central Committee with 77 members. The Central Committee later elected a 17 numbers of
Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the highest organ of the central committee in communist parties. The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in socialist and Islamist parties, such as the UK Labour Party's NEC or the Poli ...
members Committee.


Politburo members


General Secretary


Electoral performance


Members of Lok Sabha


Members of Legislative Assembly


Mass organizations

The main mass organizations of the party are: * Revolutionary Youth Association (RYA) * All India Students Association (AISA) *All India Agricultural and Rural Labour Association (AIARLA) *All India Peasants' Coordination Committee * All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) * All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA) * Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC) * All India Kisan Mahasabha (AIKM)


See also

*
List of political parties in India India has a multi-party system. The Election Commission of India (ECI) grants recognition to national-level and state-level political parties based on objective criteria. A recognised political party enjoys privileges such as a reserved party ...


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation Member parties of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance Anti-capitalist political parties Anti-capitalist organizations Political parties established in 1974 Communist parties in India