Kerala: CPM drive against communalism from September 6

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: CPM will conduct a state-wide campaign against RSS-BJP's communal agenda from September 6 to 12. CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said BJP was trying to polarise the country on religious lines for electoral gains and creating a divide between communities. National institutes of excellence, historical research institutions, academic and research centres were being packed with RSS sympathisers to distort and twist history and alter curricula for suiting their divisive agenda. He said public spaces were being communalised to the extent that lynch mobs are having a free run.

CPM state secretariat has appealed to all democratic and secular forces to join the party’s campaign. The campaign is to defend country’s social and secular fabric which is under threat from communal and fascist forces. BJP is making all out efforts to polarise the nation on communal lines. During the week-long campaign colourful processions , cultural conferences, discourse will be organised at  the local level involving libraries, clubs and other cultural organisations. At a time when communal forces are trying to fan communal and caste feelings misusing even puranas , all secular and democratic forces need to unite to defeat their devious designs.

Kodiyeri said many institutions functioning under the parliamentary democratic system were now being saffronised and communalised at a faster rate. There is a need to build powerful resistance against these blatant attacks on the democratic institutions. The CPM accused Sangh Parivar of terrorising democratic and secular voices and even liquidating them to push their divisive agenda. The attacks in the name of cow have increased manifold with various organisations affiliated to the Sangh Parivar attacking people in the name of gau raksha. The party said the attack on Muslim family in a train in Delhi which led to the ghastly murder of 15-year-old Junaid, exposed their dangerous agenda.  These attacks are being carried out by Sangh Parivar to create communal polarisation in the country and reap electoral benefits.

The CPM said it has adopted strident position against majority and minority communalism and that was the main reason why the party was being targeted by communal and fundamentalist forces. The party has taken the lead to bring unity between all democratic and secular forces against communalism. According to CPM, the BJP and Sangh Parivar have started making attempts to create communal divide in Kerala as well. The state has always upheld the slogan of peoples unity and  harmony against communal and divisive agenda. The CPM said the birth anniversaries of Sree Narayana Guru and Chattambi Swami fell on September 6 and 11 respectively. Both social reformers had fought against fanaticism and caste discrimination.