A 60,000 strong exodus: Curtains drawing close over CPM's existence in Bengal?

Kolkata: At a time when top CPI-M leaders are holding the party Congress in Hyderabad to determine the tactical line which the party will follow for the next three years, Bengal, once a red bastion, is showing a gloomy picture with 60,000 workers leaving the party in the past one and a half years.

The organisational report presented at the party Congress shows that since the 2016 Assembly polls in Bengal till now, 60,000 workers have left the party. Of these party members, around 15,000 idle ones have been dropped by the leadership itself, while the remaining 45,000 members have not renewed their membership.

The huge fall in the number of members has also affected the financial health of the party badly.

It may be mentioned that a few days ago, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had criticised the senior leaders of the party for their failure to stop the exodus of their cadres to BJP.

Political experts said there are three reasons responsible for the present situation. The party was thrown out of power in 2011 by Mamata Banerjee. Instead of trying to repair the shortcomings that had led to their defeat, party leaders tried to convince the workers that Trinamool Congress would not be able to come back in the 2016 Assembly polls.

The unofficial alliance with Congress was not liked by the majority of the party workers. The party had bagged only 28 seats out 294 in the Bengal Assembly. The frustrated and dejected party workers had started leaving the party en masse in East and West Midnapore, East and West Burdwan, Bankura, Purulia, Hooghly and Howrah.

Most of the local committee offices in these districts are still closed as there is none available to open them.

Secondly, the party is losing significance in all India politics. Even in the Hyderabad party Congress, the main issue is whether the party will have alliance with Congress in future. The difference between Sitaram Yechury and Prakash Karat over the issue, which is being reported in the media, has also affected the morale of the workers.

Lastly, the development carried out by Mamata Banerjee in rural areas has also given benefits to the families of CPI-M supporters. The cycles under Sabuj Sathi or scholarships under Kanyashree or Sikshashree have helped the student community in rural areas immensely.

Initially, CPI-M leaders had tried to convince people that poor quality bicycles are being given to the students. But over the years they have been proven wrong. Political experts feel it is almost impossible for the party to turn the situation around in Bengal. They maintained that the same situation will follow in Tripura, another erstwhile stronghold of the party.