Full credit must be given to the central leadership of the CPI, which took a firm stand on the issue. The tough stance taken by the trio – general secretary S. Sudhakar Reddy and secretaries, D. Raja and Gurudas Dasgupta averted a contest which would have set a bad precedent. Credit is also due to Assistant secretary of Kerala CPI, K. E. Ismail who withdrew from a contest following the directive of the central leaders.

To say that Kanam’s credentials for the job are impeccable is only to state the obvious. A leader who rose from the ranks, Rajendran brings to his new job – a tough task indeed – a wealth of experience having adorned almost all major posts in the party as well as in the AITUC. The remarkable job he did as a trade union leader has few parallels in the state’s trade union history. It was the bill Kanam, who became the AISF secretary at the young age of 20, introduced in the state assembly which was later adopted as an act for the welfare of the construction workers. He became a state secretariat member at the age of 25. The valuable experience he gained by working under titans like M. N. Govindan Nair, TV Thomas and C. Achutha Menon will, undoubtedly stand him in good stead in his new job.

Interestingly, both Kanam and new CPI(M) state secretary, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, were elected to the State Assembly in 1982, Kanam winning from Vazhoor constituency in central Kerala and Kodiyeri emerging victorious from Kannur. Kodiyeri is three years younger than Kanam who has turned 65.

An oft-repeated criticism against the CPI and its state leadership – leaders like CK Chandrappan are an exception - has been that the party functions, at times, as the B team of the CPI(M). That criticism cannot be levelled any longer now that Kanam is at the helm. Kanam has all along been known as a hardliner vis-à-vis the CPI(M). One thing can be said without fear of being contradicted. Under his stewardship, the CPI will not play second fiddle to the CPI(M). Kanam, that way, belongs to the Chandrappan school, which enjoins equality of the partners in the Left Democratic Front (LDF).

Just one example will illustrate the point. Addressing his first press conference as the new CPI secretary, Kanam made a significant observation, something which none of his predecessors have had the confidence to say: that the CPI also deserves the Chief Minister’s post! No further explanation is necessary as to the future style of functioning of Kanam.

Be that as it may, there is no denying that Kanam has a tough task ahead. He has assumed the state CPI’s leadership at a time when the party finds itself at a crossroads of sorts.

His top priority must be to strengthen the state CPI. It is a task easier said than done. But then, Kanam has the requisite credentials for the job of restoring the CPI’s position as the Number one party in its core area: as many as 24 to 25 assembly constituencies spread over the state, with special accent on central and south Kerala. The ground reality is that, at present, the CPI lags behind others in these seats.

Restoring its pre-eminent position in these core constituencies is of paramount importance – an essential pre-requisite for firming up its position vis-à-vis the CPI(M), too. A stronger and energized party will be in a better position to have its way and make its point within the LDF. This is a job which must be undertaken right away.

The other problem which Kanam has to address is factionalism which has reared its head of late. Compared to the CPI(M), it is a recent phenomenon, it having started after Pannyan Ravindran took over as the secretary, though for non fault of his.

Rightly or wrongly, K. E. Ismail who was in the race for the secretary’s post is perceived as being soft to the CPI(M). His detractors in the party say that but for the firm and timely intervention of the central leadership of the CPI, the state CPI unit would have been hijacked by the CPI(M)!

Another tough challenge for Kanam is how to go about nipping in the bud itself of factionalism. Will he apply the Pinarayi prescription which enjoins total elimination of the detractors? Democratic centralism, which is the cornerstone of the functioning of a communist party, demands the application of this method. But that it has failed to end sectarianism in the CPI(M) is an open secret despite the claims of former state CPI(M) secretary, Pinarayi Vijayan to the contrary.

The most visible manifestation of Pinarayi’s failure are VS Achuthanandan’s walk out which stunned the CPI(M)’s state conference. An equally visible sign of the failure to curb sectarianism is the significant statement of CPI(M) leader, Vaikom Vishwan that Pinarayi is only one among several party leaders who deserve to be Chief Minister! That was the first manifestation of the south-north divide in the CPI(M) and an open defiance of the dominant Kannur lobby in the party led by Pinarayi.

Therefore, it is imperative Kanam must guard against the pitfalls of eliminating factionalism with an iron hand. True, factionalism cannot be allowed. But it must be handled with utmost care and tact. In this regard, he would do well to emulate Pannyan’s efforts to synthesise the rival factions led by Kanam and C. Divakaran during his stewardship of the Kerala CPI.

Kanam has also laid accent - rightly so – on more work and less talk. It is an known fact that one of the main reasons for periodic escalation in CPI-CPI(M) tension has been the tendency of both the parties to rush to the press with statements critical of each other. The Kanam era will, hopefully, see a reversal of this unwelcome trend. That will be the first firm step to ensure greater cohesion and stability of the LDF. (IPA Service)