Vijayan retained leader by Kerala communists

Thiruvananthapuram: In a clear indication that Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan has further tightened his grip over a party apparatus riddled by factional feuds, he was re-elected to the post by the 20th edition of the party's state conference which concluded in Thiruvananthapuram yesterday.

It is for the fourth successive time that Vijayan has been elected to lead the CPM and the new term will make him the longest serving party secretary in the state. So far that record had been held by his bitterest critic, veteran party leader V.S. Achuthanandan.

Pinarayi was first elevated to the post of party secretary in 1998, when he was the minister for power in the government headed by E.K. Nayanar.

Vijahan hails from Kannur district's Pinarayi village where the Communist party was first formed in the state. He began his eventful political career through student union activities before joining the Communist party in 1964. His legislative career began with a victory in the 1970 assembly polls and he got re-elected thrice in 1977, 1991 and 1996.

Overwhelming majority

The election was more of a formality as the overwhelming majority of the 563 delegates at the conference belonged to his faction. Right from conferences held at the party's grassroots level, the Vijayan faction had pre-empted Achuthanandan loyalists from assuming leadership positions that would assure them voting rights at the party conference.

The conference also constituted a 84-member state committee of the party. Unlike at the previous three state conferences, the panel of state committee members presented by the state leadership was unanimously approved by the delegates.

Pinarayi, in his organisational report presented at the conference, criticised Achuthanandan at length and accused him of having crossed all limits of party discipline. But the party's central leadership vetted portions of the report to give the latter some respite.

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India, the second largest constituent in the CPM-led Left Democratic Front alliance in Kerala, hailed Achuthanandan as a successful chief minister. The party, which is holding its own state conference currently, said in its report that he had been successful as an administrator and maintained good relations with all constituents of the alliance and their representatives in the ministry.