Kerala: CPM state secretariat meet from today

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As the 20th state conference of the CPM being conducted in the capital city for the first time is just two weeks away, the CPM state secretariat meeting starting on Tuesday will focus on preparing the organisational report and activity report to be presented in the conference apart from evaluating the preparations for the conference.The state secretariat will meet on January 24 and 25 and on January 28 and 29 followed by state committee meeting on January 30 and 31. Though the CPM central committee has approved the ideological document at its meeting the other day in New Delhi, it will not be discussed threadbare at this meeting, according to sources in the CPM. However, the presence of the central leadership including that of general secretary Prakash Karat at the meeting will give it added significance. One of the issues which will get attention  will be the Vigilance case against V S Achuthanandan with regard to  the land assignment case. Despite having strong reservations about the style of functioning of VS, in view of the Vigilance case against him, criticism may be toned down in the organisational report, according to political observers. The party central leadership’s stand that VS was honest and the case charged against him was politically motivated has strengthened VS’s position in the party despite major setbacks to his faction. It may be noted that while the state leadership of the party had taken a cautious step of coming out in support of  Achuthanandan after initial reluctance, the central leadership had no such ambiguity in taking a position on the issue. There has been criticism that VS had kept the state party leadership in the dark about the land assignment case when he was ready to provide all documents to the central leadership. The organisation report to be finalised in the secretariat may also be carrying the different issues that have come up in the district conferences and  the elements of factional feuds that have marred the conference in at least some districts.