KOLKATA: At 42, Debabrata Mukherjee has seen the ups and downs of life. But nothing was worse than Friday the 13th.
The past few days were trying, but Mukherjee put up a brave front. "How much worse can it get? The 2009 Lok Sabha election results were a big blow to the party. We are prepared now," the devoted CPM cadre from north Kolkata's Sukia Street would tell people in his 'para', trying his best to sound optimistic.
That composure was missing on Friday as the communists bit the dust. Mukherjee was devastated. Was it irony or coincidence that the man with a red heart was clad in a green T-shirt? Mukherjee probably hadn't even noticed. Those unflattering numbers had numbed his senses. "I didn't expect the party to perform very well. But this is beyond imagination," he said. Exit polls had sounded the warning bell, but they couldn't shake Mukherjee's faith in a party he had served for 24 years.
"In 2009, party offices were shut for days following the reversal. The leaders seemed resigned. But after some introspection, the confidence returned. I felt that even if the Left lost, CPM would weather the blow," he said.
Only once before had he experienced such sadness — on the day his father, a Congress worker who turned Leftist, died. "He switched to CPM some years after I did. He never said anything when I rushed out at unearthly hours to help people in need. He bore my expenses till the last day. It is only after him that I had to earn my living," he said.
Associated with the CPM since a teenager, Mukherjee formally enrolled as a member in 1987. He started under Jawahar Gupta, head of the party's Sukia local committee office. His interest in painting drew him to poster-making and wall-writing the CPM cadres engaged through the year.
"We had regular classes on Marxist philosophy and ways to conduct oneself as a party cadre. There was frenzied wall-writing prior to Durga Puja so that villagers visiting the city could be assured they were not alone in the fight against price rise and struggle for workers' rights. But slowly, these routine activities that incorporated zeal and commitment into newcomers in the party petered out," Mukherjee said.
Yet, there was hope. "You know, the party and its core philosophy are not wrong. Till India becomes a prosperous nation and there is no glaring inequality, Marxism will remain relevant," he said. "Some bad elements have crept into the party. They would have in any party that has been in power for 34 years. But in the past couple of years, there has been a serious attempt at course correction. Several corrupt elements have been weeded out. There will be more cleansing in future."
He was critical of the way Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee went about admonishing partymen and issuing public apologies. "Admitting mistakes before the people is fine. But was there a need to overdo it at every election rally? Not only did it demoralize the grassroots-level worker, it also made the opposition attack credible."
He also disagreed with Bhattacharjee's 'amra 235, ora 30' comment in 2006, ridiculing the opposition's lack of numbers. "I don't think there was a need to 'wipe out' the opposition. I had the premonition that CPM had hit a crest and the trough would inevitably follow. The difference in vote share was a mere 3-4%. A small swing and the roles would have reversed. That has happened now."
Is he disillusioned with the party and its leaders? Mukherjee's answer is oblique: "For now, let's accept the people's verdict with humility, something that the party has not displayed for some time."
The past few days were trying, but Mukherjee put up a brave front. "How much worse can it get? The 2009 Lok Sabha election results were a big blow to the party. We are prepared now," the devoted CPM cadre from north Kolkata's Sukia Street would tell people in his 'para', trying his best to sound optimistic.
That composure was missing on Friday as the communists bit the dust. Mukherjee was devastated. Was it irony or coincidence that the man with a red heart was clad in a green T-shirt? Mukherjee probably hadn't even noticed. Those unflattering numbers had numbed his senses. "I didn't expect the party to perform very well. But this is beyond imagination," he said. Exit polls had sounded the warning bell, but they couldn't shake Mukherjee's faith in a party he had served for 24 years.
"In 2009, party offices were shut for days following the reversal. The leaders seemed resigned. But after some introspection, the confidence returned. I felt that even if the Left lost, CPM would weather the blow," he said.
Only once before had he experienced such sadness — on the day his father, a Congress worker who turned Leftist, died. "He switched to CPM some years after I did. He never said anything when I rushed out at unearthly hours to help people in need. He bore my expenses till the last day. It is only after him that I had to earn my living," he said.
Associated with the CPM since a teenager, Mukherjee formally enrolled as a member in 1987. He started under Jawahar Gupta, head of the party's Sukia local committee office. His interest in painting drew him to poster-making and wall-writing the CPM cadres engaged through the year.
"We had regular classes on Marxist philosophy and ways to conduct oneself as a party cadre. There was frenzied wall-writing prior to Durga Puja so that villagers visiting the city could be assured they were not alone in the fight against price rise and struggle for workers' rights. But slowly, these routine activities that incorporated zeal and commitment into newcomers in the party petered out," Mukherjee said.
Yet, there was hope. "You know, the party and its core philosophy are not wrong. Till India becomes a prosperous nation and there is no glaring inequality, Marxism will remain relevant," he said. "Some bad elements have crept into the party. They would have in any party that has been in power for 34 years. But in the past couple of years, there has been a serious attempt at course correction. Several corrupt elements have been weeded out. There will be more cleansing in future."
He was critical of the way Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee went about admonishing partymen and issuing public apologies. "Admitting mistakes before the people is fine. But was there a need to overdo it at every election rally? Not only did it demoralize the grassroots-level worker, it also made the opposition attack credible."
He also disagreed with Bhattacharjee's 'amra 235, ora 30' comment in 2006, ridiculing the opposition's lack of numbers. "I don't think there was a need to 'wipe out' the opposition. I had the premonition that CPM had hit a crest and the trough would inevitably follow. The difference in vote share was a mere 3-4%. A small swing and the roles would have reversed. That has happened now."
Is he disillusioned with the party and its leaders? Mukherjee's answer is oblique: "For now, let's accept the people's verdict with humility, something that the party has not displayed for some time."
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