“Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it's just the opposite.” - John Kenneth Galbraith

Nothing can be closer to truth, the way the famous American economist compared capitalism and communism. As big names and countries that espoused communism fell by the wayside over the last two decades, there is one country or rather two states where communists continue believe that they are having a resurrection. Last time it happened, someone called Jesus woke up from the dead on the third day. But for the communists in India, they would stay nailed on the wall, forever. 

Even as US and Cuba break ice and shake hands, Russia talks about Oil and Gas, China asks ‘Who Mao?’ – Our Karat and Yechury believe that communists in India are not just alive and kicking, but even growing. That is like telling a patient in coma, that he will run 100 meters in the next Olympics. The reference to Coma is perhaps the most appropriate for our communist parties, be it CPM, CPI, RSP, Forward Block and other smaller parties which can never win even a Panchayat election. While Didi is ensuring that the Leftists will not have a re-birth in West Bengal in the foreseeable future, VS Achuthanandan is making sure that Pinarayi Vijayan and Co Pvt Ltd will never make it to Cliff House in Thiruvananthapuram. For those who are not familiar with the world of Kerala politics, Cliff House is the official residence of the Chief Minister of Kerala. VS stayed there for quite a while and even at the age of 90 plus, the old warhorse fancies the chances of making it there, again - despite round the clock efforts by Pinarayi faction to pull him down. 

The decline and demise of the communist parties in India had to do with issues both on the international and domestic front. While big brother USSR under Gorbachev decided to renounce communism, Romania, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Poland followed suit egged on by aggressive Western Powers who wanted ‘democracy’ at any cost. On November 9, 1989, Berlin Wall, the most potent symbol of the Cold War division of Europe came down, and with it changing the course of communism. What happened with bits and pieces of some of the communist regimes is a lesson in history – much as US realized in its mis-adventures in Afghanistan and Iraq. Even the dyed in the wool veterans in Cuba shed their bag and baggage and embraced US of A, something Fidel Castro would have never imagined, will happen during his lifetime. Up there, John F Kennedy must be regretting wasting his time and effort is dealing with the Cuban missile crisis - maybe he should waited a bit longer.

Back home, on the eastern front with West Bengal gone forever, the Commies are now left with just Tripura and that credit should go to one man, Manik Sarkar and not the likes of Karat or Yechury. Down south, Kerala holds a record for having the first democratically elected communist government in the world – but decades later, that record will be the only thing the Commies will have to talk about. The way VS and Pinarayi factions fight it out, day in and day out, it would put cats to shame. Instead of unitedly standing against Congress led UDF, Pinarayi and Co’s only aim is to ensure that VS is somehow dislodged from the position of Leader of Opposition in the state assembly. After having ejected the veteran VS from the party polit-bureau, Pinarayi is now bent on easing out VS’s supporters from every district. This has led to anger among the party’s rank and file, many of whom had stood with party during its bad days. EMS must be laughing his heart out that he did not live to see this day. 

But that is not the only reason why the Communists in India have their one foot in the grave. The likes of Karat have systematically destroyed the party’s future by not reading the writing on the wall. ‘Inquilab Zindabad’ does not rhyme with today’s young generation, and the Commies do not seem to have realized this. No doubt, the land distribution that happened in the two communist citadels West Bengal and Kerala helped the poor, but that was just about it. The Naxals ran away with revolution and Che now makes his appearance on T Shirts. The world is changing, yet our communist leaders have gone back to the Jurassic age, unable to fathom that their demise is near. 

Mark my words, a decade from now, CPI M and CPI will not even have the status of a state party, forget being a national party. Like the dinosaurs of the Jurassic age; Karat, Yechury, Pinarayi, Raja and others will be soon consigned in the dustbin of history, just like Stalin, Lenin, Mao and Brezhnev. Finally, Lal Salam, will be a funeral cry.