- The Youth wing of CPI-M organised a plethora of functions to celebrate Shivaji Jayanti
- For the last 7-8 years, LEFT parties have tried their best to maintain relevancy, only to fail
- The support for nationalistic icons like Shivaji is just a new weapon they are unleashing on Indians
In 2015, PM Modi had acknowledged in parliament that opposition leaders also praise him for his political wisdom. If you were too busy to listen to that, you can see its manifestation in CPI-M being forced to celebrate Shivaji Jayanti to stay relevant.
CPI-M youth wing celebrates Shivaji
On February 19, India celebrated Shivaji Jayanti in full fervour. Various nationalistic voices organised events like quizzes, seminars, lectures, memorials to commemorate the warrior king. However, people celebrating the Jayanti were in for a surprise.
The 2022 edition of Shivaji Jayanti was celebrated by the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) as well. Though it claims to be an independent organisation, it is believed to be the youth wing of CPI-M. In fact, in 41 years of its history, it boasts of having trained hardcore communists like former Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, former Tripura CM Manik Sarkar and M.B. Rajesh, the current speaker of Kerala Legislative assembly.
Read more: DYFI, CPI (M) activists booked for pelting stones at mosques
DYFI took celebration on digital platforms
At around 10:54 AM on 19th February, DYFI took everyone by surprise when it posted a picture of Shivaji Maharaj on its Facebook page. The post was captioned “King of the people”.
The Facebook page then went on to post photos of 5 more such celebratory events. At the Shramshakti Party office in Ambajogai, its speakers urged everyone to read ‘Who was Shivaji’ written by Co. Govind Pansare.
Few other events like book distribution ceremonies, drawing competitions were organised by DYFI on the occasion.
The sudden move by Left forces to celebrate Shivaji Maharaj did come off as an astounding decision by many, but there is a deep political message hidden in it. Left parties are not known for celebrating heroes who worked to unite the country. This is built right into the structure of communism. Communists do not believe in national boundaries, so ultimately, they can not celebrate someone like Shivaji
So, what makes up for this discrepancy?
Though in their speeches, communists may claim that they have huge public support, in reality, they are nowhere to be found on the political map of India. Ever since, PM Modi came to power, the LEFT which had once halted India-US nuclear deal has lost its relevance. Firstly, Its intellectual aristocracy suffered several jolts in the wake of Award Waapsi and tukde-tukde campaigns in JNU. It resulted in a loss in electoral politics as LEFT was ousted in the Tripura Assembly elections in 2018.
Read more: New footage of ‘Tukde-Tukde Gang’ substantiates the allegation of seditious slogans
Right now, they are only functioning as extremely opaque and sophisticated intellectuals of Lutyens’ media and higher educational institutes like JNU and Jadavpur University. Additionally, Kerala is the only state where they are in power.
Communists are trying to align with nationalistic fervour
LEFT parties like CPI-M have tried everything in the last 7-8 years, but they have failed miserably. People of the country have seen through their divisive agendas in the garb of working for the poor and downtrodden. Moreover, a renaissance of civilisational nationalism in India is also in its nascent stage, which is expected to accelerate in the upcoming years.
Communists are not stupid. When they noticed that their violent methods won’t be accepted, they covered their violent means with the veil of democratic political parties like CPI and CPI-M. This new support for Shivaji is just one of the facets of communists who are political chameleons of the highest order.