Kerala has been the exact opposite — with factional feuds plaguing the party at regular intervals. Party stalwarts M V Raghavan and K R Gowri were both removed but neither were PB or CC members. And then a bitter battle between the party organization and the state CITU leadership raged for years which was replaced by the ‘mother of all factional feuds’ between VS and Pinarayi—that shows no signs of ending.

In fact, CPM political-organisational reports published at the end of every party congress invariably devote a separate section on the “inner party situation” in Kerala with the exhortation to the state leaders to unite. The 18th Congress report (April 2005), for instance, ends the Kerala section with the words: “The Party expresses serious concern at the persisting disunity and factional tendencies in Kerala, which is one of the strong centres of the Party in India. The Party cannot allow such a situation to continue.”

But the situation not only continued but only got worse despite the CPM-led LDF getting the highest number of seats ever in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections and following that with a spectacular victory in the Assembly elections in 2006.

Since taking over as general secretary in 2005, Karat has made innumerable trips to Kerala to contain the factionalism in the state but sustained attempts by the central leadership have failed to make any real difference. Today’s move may seem an extreme measure, but party insiders remain skeptical whether it will resolve the endemic factionalism that has spread deep and wide in the state unit of the party. The central leadership, some feel, should have acted decisively much earlier — coming out clearly against one or the other faction instead of trying to accommodate both.

... contd.