CPI(M) Kerala Meet Weighs Apps to Sharpen Cadre Ideology

The CPI(M) in Kerala is considering mobile and web applications to help party activists resolve ideological and political doubts quickly, State secretary M.V. Govindan said in Kozhikode on Monday.

The suggestion emerged during the open debate of the party's extended State committee meeting, which began on September 13 and is aimed at addressing the organisation's political and organisational weaknesses after the Left Democratic Front's poor showing in the Assembly polls.

Govindan said the idea is to reinforce the ongoing process of ideological education by adopting modern technological tools. If a comrade has a doubt on an ideological or political question, such an app could offer immediate assistance, he told reporters.

The discussion follows a Central Committee review of the election debacle that flagged a shortage of cadre able to explain the party's political perspectives to the public and inadequate politicisation within class and mass organisations, describing these as major organisational weaknesses. The review also noted that campaigns against communalism had not translated into public consciousness, and said both the leadership and cadre must be politically sharp when facing adverse situations.

Besides State committee members, district secretariat members and leaders of the party's class and mass organisations are attending the three-day meeting. Govindan presented a draft document on corrective measures on Sunday, after which participants held district-level group discussions and an open debate that continued into Monday.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Govindan acknowledged that the debate saw sharp criticism of the party leadership, though he did not disclose details. Delegates are understood to have sought stronger corrective steps and to have demanded that accountability be fixed on the leadership for the poll result.

Another suggestion was to build a collective of like-minded organisations, including human rights groups, to resist what the party sees as unfair targeting of its leaders by central agencies. The proposal comes days after the Enforcement Directorate wrote to the Kerala Police Chief seeking an FIR against Opposition leader and Polit Bureau member Pinarayi Vijayan, his daughter T. Veena and her husband, Beypore MLA P.A. Mohamed Riyas, in the CMRL-Exalogic pay-off case. While general secretary M.A. Baby referred only in passing to central agency activity in his inaugural address on September 13, Govindan that day described the agency's move as an attack on the party.

The meeting is scheduled to conclude on September 15 afternoon, when Govindan will respond to the debate and present a report incorporating delegates' suggestions into the draft document. A mass rally at the Kozhikode beach is planned for the evening.