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Sitaram Yechury (1952-2024): Everyone’s favourite comrade

Aseem — Sat, 14 Sep 2024 08:49:37 +0000

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary and former Rajya Sabha member Sitaram Yechury passed away in a Delhi hospital on September 12 after battling a severe respiratory infection. He was 72. People from across the political spectrum mourned his passing, recalling his commitment to the working class, the Constitution, and social justice and equality.

Sitaram, or just “Sita” to his friends, cut his teeth in politics early, as a student in Jawaharlal Nehru University, a Left bastion in the 1970s. He was elected president of the JNU Students Union three times between 1977 and 1978, a period he would later describe with characteristic wit and humour as his term was punctuated by interruptions, coinciding with post-Emergency struggles. He was also arrested for a brief while during that period. Later, in the 1980s, he was elected all-India president of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI).

Yechury will be remembered and celebrated for his role as a Member of Parliament and for bringing together diverse political forces in the battle against communalism and authoritarianism, which are among the many facets of his journey as a pragmatic communist.

The political upsurges during his JNU years, which eventually evolved into the struggle against the Emergency, coupled with his study of economics with the late Krishna Bharadwaj and others at the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, provided the milieu in which his political perspective developed.

He began a doctorate on Indian agriculture, which he never completed, but a paper based on the early stages of his research appeared in Economic & Political Weekly in 1976.

Early years

A brilliant student, he was born in Chennai (then Madras) into a family that came from Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh. He was raised and did his schooling in Hyderabad. As a result, he was conversant in both Hindi and English.

He landed in Delhi for higher studies and graduated with a bachelor’s degree from St. Stephen’s College. Yechury had a stellar academic record, having stood first in the all-India examination of the Central Board of Secondary Education.

Also Read | Sitaram Yechury: ‘The BJP should understand that without States, there is no India’

He also played tennis, loved old Hindi film songs, the tunes of which he often whistled, and he was completely colour blind. One of his favourite songs was the Hemant Kumar number “Ae mere pyare watan” from the film Kabuliwala.

He was a junior of fellow ideologue and party member Prakash Karat, and both were early mentors to subsequent generations of student leaders who lived by the motto of “study and struggle” and “education for all”, which was the SFI creed.

Yechury perhaps figured out early on that the most complex ideas could be communicated in the language of the people. He was not one for using complex theories, at least in the public domain, and he knew that the Left movement and Left politics could become popular only by raising people’s issues through class struggles and by demystifying jargon.

His affability was well known, something friends and associates recall fondly. Yechury was popular, but he was not a demagogue; nor did he use bombastic language. His speeches were conversational in style, presenting arguments conveyed in a language that everyone could understand.

CPI(M)‘s ‘rising star’

His political journey from student leader to joining the ranks of the CPI(M) in the mid-1970s often led to descriptions of him as a “rising star” of the party. In the 1980s, he was the editor of the SFI journal, Students’ Struggle, which reached new heights during his tenure. Yechury even enlisted the support of Safdar Hashmi, the renowned playwright and director, in this venture.

It was during this time that the then government’s “Challenge of Education” document appeared, marking the beginnings of a shift in the country’s education policy towards what was then known as the “New Education Policy”, which eventually became the National Policy on Education 1986. Yechury was a leading figure in developing a critique of that policy and organising resistance to it.

“In Parliament, Sitaram Yechury’s speeches often referred to “India, that is Bharat”, to exemplify the country’s syncretic tradition. This emphasis only grew after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance assumed power in 2014.”

In 1985, 10 years after Yechury joined the CPI(M), he was elected to the Central Committee of the party. The following years were tumultuous ones for any communist: the rise of Mikhail Gorbachev and the introduction of glasnost and perestroika in the Soviet Union, the Tiananmen Square incident, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the eventual collapse of socialism in the Soviet Union and eastern Europe.

The Left, globally and internally, was under severe attack. In the ideological challenges and debates that sprung up from these events, Yechury stayed firm: mistakes may have been made but socialism was the future. He always analysed these developments within a Marxist framework and actively participated in shaping the CPI(M)’s positions on these questions.

In Parliament, Yechury’s speeches often referred to “India, that is Bharat”, to exemplify the country’s syncretic tradition. This emphasis only grew after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance assumed power in 2014 and attacks on minorities became commonplace. He defended his alma mater (JNU) in Parliament when it was unfairly targeted by the regime. He was equally emphatic about the attack on institutions, the subversion of the Constitution, the safeguarding of the rights of Dalits and minorities, and the need to safeguard the autonomy of higher educational institutions. At the same time, he also realised that while both the Congress and the BJP were bourgeois parties, the threat from the latter was greater. There was a growing feeling that the changed conditions perhaps necessitated the forging of tactical alliances without compromising on the fundamentals of ideology.

No disconnect between personality and politics

Despite its greatly reduced influence in Parliament post-2014, the Left parties led by the CPI(M) still commanded considerable moral heft. Forging a secular third front was not enough. There was also a need for an alternative to the economic policies that had widened inequalities unmeasurably since the onset of neoliberal reforms. How this could be wrought despite the class contradictions of political parties was a tightrope walk that Yechury learned to perform with ease.

Also Read | ‘BJP’s defeat imperative to protect democracy’: Sitaram Yechury

It was no secret that several policies and measures undertaken by the first United Progressive Alliance government and the emergence of a Common Minimum Programme had the strong imprint of the Left. This imprint continued in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha election in the forging of the INDIA bloc and the concerns its parties raised.

Yechury’s ability to get disparate political parties to communicate with each other and rally them together to create for an anti-BJP front has been written about in various tributes. There was no disconnect between his personality and his politics. His personality was immeasurably shaped by his politics.

His commitment to socialism and to the masses remained unwavering. And that is what he should ideally be remembered for.

The fundamental demand is the restoration of Statehood: Mohammed Yousuf Tarigami

Aseem — Sat, 31 Aug 2024 08:02:01 +0000

On August 16, the Election Commission of India announced the Assembly election for Jammu and Kashmir, giving people a chance to elect representatives after 10 years. These elections are significant, considering Jammu and Kashmir lost Article 370, its special status and statehood, on August 5, 2019. To understand the mood on the ground, Frontlinespoke to Jammu and Kashmir CPI(M) leader and People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) spokesperson, Mohammed Yousuf Tarigami.

A year after the abrogation of Article 370 in October 2020, several political parties formed the PAGD. Now, with the election approaching, we dot hear much about the alliance. Is it still active or has it collapsed?

We have to understand the context of the emergence of PAGD. It was not after August 5, 2019, but one day before, on August 4, that Dr. Farooq Abdullah [President of Jammu and Kashmir National Conference] convened a meeting at his residence. Most of us political leaders participated in the deliberations because there were rumours about abrogation, trifurcation, bifurcation, and so on. We agreed to issue a declaration demanding the Government of India put these rumours to rest and that no attempt should be made to reduce the historical and constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir or turn it into Union Territories.

We also appealed to the Prime Minister that any decision regarding Jammu and Kashmir should be taken only after consulting the real stakeholders of the State itself, meaning all the political foundations of the State. After August 5, most of us were either detained in jails or placed under house arrest. Dr. Abdullah was under house arrest, I was also under detention. Almost all shades of political leaders were under detention. Then again, after a gap of time, we met at the residence of Dr. Abdullah and decided to revive the efforts we had initiated. There were many attempts by the authorities to divide us and make us dysfunctional. Nevertheless, we tried to remain together and succeeded to some extent in raising the concerns of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

WATCH | ‘Article 370 should be the concern of the republic itself’: Mohammed Yousuf Tarigami, Convenor, PAGD

In an exclusive interview with Frontline, Tarigami addresses the challenges facing the region, including the downgrading of statehood, concerns over land and job protections, and the need for unity among secular parties to counter the BJP’s influence.
| Video Credit:
Interview by Irfan Amin Malik; Production Assistants: Mridula V and Kavya Pradeep M; Editing by Samson Ronald K.; Produced By: Jinoy Jose P.

You mean to say that the government has actually played a role in creating a division between the PAGD constituents?

It is not a question of whether they created it. But they certainly attempted to and did not succeed. PAGDwas an eyesore for the government and remained so for the administration. They have accused us, condemned us, and even declaring us as a “gang of Gupkar.” All those abuses and accusations were levelled against all the political leaders.

Also Read | Kashmir’s revolt at the ballot box

But during all these years, we saw a lot of political parties leaving the alliance for many reasons.

That is a fact. At one point, Sajjad Lone and some others such as the Congress were associated. Later on, when we visited Jammu and the question of increasing the number of voters arose, that concern pushed us together, including those sections of politicians from the Jammu region that were not part of Gupkar earlier. The necessity for the emergence of such a political forum was because of the concerns about the constitutionally guaranteed rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. In our view, it was a big assault on the bond of relationship itself. Jammu and Kashmir acceded to India in certain circumstances when there was a claim from across the border.

This was the only Muslim-majority area bordering the other side, and the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the then leadership took a historical stand and offered to have a relationship with the Union of India. The Constituent Assembly incorporated Article 370 in the Constitution of India. It did not come from any other area or country. It emerged out of the discussion and debate of the Constituent Assembly. It arose because of the pact between the leadership of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union of India. This is historically a bond of relationship, which has been assaulted. Article 370 is not a favour. It is not just the concern of the people of Jammu and Kashmir alone. It should be the concern of the republic itself.

At a time when two major regional parties, the National Conference and PDP, were part of PAGD, we saw recently in the Lok Sabha election that both fought elections separately.

You see, there is a misconception that PAGD is a parade for electoral purposes. It is not. It is the question of the larger concern. There could have not been any meeting ground for those sections of the population that have contrary views on many other issues. We were accused of being confined to the valley. This nomenclature emerged just because the meeting took place in Gupkar, but it was an alliance that concerned itself with issues pertaining to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. It is not confined to the valley.

My point is, and if you go through the declaration which was adopted unanimously on August 4, 2019, there is no mention of elections. There was no question of elections at that time. The concern was that there should not be any assault on our Constitutional rights. And that concern remains even now. Those concerns are not just attended to, erased, or addressed.

Also Read | Abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A: Assault on the Constitution

As a PAGD spokesperson, do you not agree with those leaders who have already left? On many occasions, they told me that the PAGD is not an electoral alliance, it is an ideological alliance.

I am not talking about ideology. I am talking about the political concerns of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

A shopkeeper shows stickers of logos of different political parties ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in Jammu. August 29, 2024.
| Photo Credit:
PTI

Why did PAGD then fight DDC (District Development Council) election?

Again, it was a compulsion. At that time, we were in Jammu holding a meeting, talking to the people there as well because we were told that we were confined to the valley. Then all of a sudden, there was an announcement of the DDC election. We hurriedly decided that we should take advantage of this situation.

So would it be right to say that PAGD could not move forward?

The essential reason, the real reason for the emergence of PAGD is the broader concern of the people of Jammu and Kashmir regarding the assault that took place on August 5, 2019, against the constitutionally guaranteed rights of the people. That is the concern. That concern remains even now. Whether political parties get engaged, some may come, some may go, or it may not remain functional, it may get dysfunctional. But nevertheless, as a citizen, I must tell you that the concerns of each one of us, the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir, remain.

It is a historical State that has been downgraded without the consent of the real stakeholders, the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Now look at Ladakh. Earlier, when this decision was taken, there was some sort of celebration in the Leh area because they wanted Union Territory status. Now what is happening? Kashmiris have yet to decide to come collectively on the streets to protest. But in Kargil, they have shouted on the streets saying that we need protection of land, we need protection of jobs, we need Statehood, we need legislature. So my point is, now go to Jammu.

There is erosion. In the last Parliamentary election, despite tall claims by the BJP that there was no effective resistance from opposition parties, many people voiced their concerns and voted against the BJP.It is not only in the valley that business is down, the market is down. It is equally so in the Jammu region. Where are the jobs? They had claimed that earlier Kashmiris have taken the jobs, and Jammu people were waiting. The younger generation is still waiting. There are no jobs. And whatever jobs are there now, the gates are open for those who are outside the boundary of Jammu and Kashmir, which was earlier guaranteed by the Maharaja by issuing a notification in 1927 that no outsider should come to purchase land or get employment here. This demand emerged out of the concerns of the people of Jammu. The notification was issued not by a popular government but by the ruler, Maharaja Hari Singh. Now Jammu’s people are feeling the brunt of this whole process, which is highly undemocratic, highly anti-people.

Being an INDIA alliance member, why has PDP been sidelined?

I am concerned because, you see, after years together we do not have an Assembly. This is the only region in the whole country where there is no Assembly since 2018. The last Assembly election held in this region was in 2014, 10 years ago. So, the denial of democratic rights, denial of the very basic right of having our own Assembly, is a concern for the whole population here. Why has it happened now? Why was it not happening before? Because they were not sure about the support that they wanted to engineer. They went for delimitation, and added more seats to the Jammu region irrespective of the lesser population.

Then they again nominated five more members, and the nomination will be done by the Lieutenant Governor. They have made amendments. Now people are talking about restoring Statehood. The Supreme Court of India has said so. But instead of restoring Statehood, the business rules have been amended. One more amendment has been moved in the Reorganisation Act itself, downgrading the cabinet, downgrading the Assembly, and empowering the unelected Lieutenant Governor. Not only that, the budget was presented by the Union government. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, minus the grants of police, budgetary allocations were put in the list of budget. What does it mean? Taking control of the police. Now whatever Assembly there will be tomorrow, it will be with less power.

Also Read | A.G. Noorani: Architect of the ‘Kashmir Formula’

You have been vocal regarding the restoration of Article 370, and you have been fighting for it along with other parties. But the Congress, being in the INDIA alliance, did not include Article 370 in their manifesto. Isn’t there a clash within the alliance?

I must tell you very frankly, you cannot just go with a fixed arrangement. When we talk about the Assembly election, we must understand that as of today, there is the BJP, which has denied this right for over a couple of years despite their requirements. They did it now because of Supreme Court directions, and because there was no other option left for the government. Now we are together. We have to be together. Not that everybody will agree with my proposals or my concerns. There may be disagreements.

We have diverse populations in Kashmir and Jammu, and we have to carve out certain areas of agreement where we can move together. It does not mean that I am giving up my position, and it does not equally mean that anybody else is supposed to accept my interpretation of the situation or my agenda. In the Parliamentary election, there was an alliance between Congress and the NC. We supported that as CPI(M). PDP was not part of that. Of course, we should have tried to avoid that, I agree. But the fact remains that Congress will not be the same as NC, and NC will not toe the line of Congress in everything. But we are unanimous on the restoration of democracy, making the administration accountable, putting an end to repressive measures against writers, journalists, students, youth, and so on. These are vital demands.

The fundamental demand, as of now, as the Supreme Court has mentioned in its judgment, is the restoration of Statehood. That remains a very important demand of all the people in Jammu and Kashmir. Besides, we want protection of land and jobs. These are important areas that have been identified by all concerned people. Fundamentally, in my view, the BJP has assaulted the Constitutional rights and the very basic rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, depriving the people of the rule of law. Bureaucracy is doing whatever it wants to do. There is huge suffocation that people are facing, whether in Kashmir or in Jammu, regarding livelihood, price rise, freedom of expression, and freedom of association. All these issues matter, and for that, broader agreements are there. There may be certain disagreements, but disagreements must not stop us from shaking hands wherever there is some possibility of working together.

Also Read | Fresh militant attacks cast shadow over Assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir

How powerful could the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly be as a Union Territory? How might the Lieutenant Governor’s expanded powers under recent amendments to the Transaction of Business Rules affect this?

That is what I am saying. The Government of India is not granting us power. They do not want to empower the people. We are not asking them to give us more power. We are asking them to restore whatever powers were there with this historic State. When the Prime Minister convened an all-parties meeting last time, he and the Home Minister assured us about the restoration of full Statehood. Now you see elections, but there is a huge effort by the Government of India to ensure that whatever Assembly is there, it is not empowered.

Why are we participating in such an exercise? Just because we do not have any other option. People often want that option, and whatever circumstances are there must be utilised. The debate and discussion that can be possible only in that house, I think, remains a requirement for all of us. The emergence of the alliance of secular parties is important in order to isolate BJP. Because BJP is desperate to impose itself on the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Is it getting difficult for you to talk to people on the ground? Are your workers motivated this time to vote, considering Jammu and Kashmir is now a Union Territory?

I do not think they need to be convinced. They are learning through their own experiences. They understand that they do not have any other option to express themselves, any platform where they can express their concerns. So this is, in my view, an opportunity for the people of Jammu and Kashmir because we do not have any other option. I appeal to the people of Jammu and Kashmir particularly youth to come forward in good numbers and continue in the process of isolating those who have undermined the very democratic rights and Constitutional rights of the people.

The Assembly election announcement has set off party-switching among political leaders. Many say a fractured mandate is possible. While BJP claims Jammu as its stronghold, the situation in Kashmir is less clear, with multiple parties contesting.

The Government of India and the administration will try to divide us, to create certain elements, encourage such elements.

But if such a situation arises?

People have the capacity to understand the situation.

What if a situation arises where Jammu goes to BJP and Kashmir gets divided among regional political parties?

Now Jammu’s people have drawn lessons from their own experience. And Kashmiris have also learned that we cannot move around in isolation from each other. Our issues are common. Our concerns are common. We have to build bridges. We have to come closer and face these challenges together.

You do not think there will be a fractured mandate this time?

I am hopeful that people have enough wisdom not to fall prey to the current government. The administration is desperate to divide our ranks. I hope that people will understand and unite their ranks. All the secular parties must realise that the challenges are bigger, and those challenges can only be met together.

Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah lost their seats in the Lok Sabha election.
| Photo Credit:
NISSAR AHMAD

In the recent Lok Sabha election, prominent Kashmir leaders, including ex-Chief Ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, lost their seats. Sajjad Lone also lost in north Kashmir. Does this signal voters’ desire for change? If so, might this trend continue in the Assembly election?

The question is, why are you predicting? Whatever happens, wait for some time, at least wait for two weeks’ time.

Anybody can lose an election. It is not only here but elsewhere as well. But they are drawing lessons too. They know how to act and how not to act. They might be drawing lessons from the Parliamentary election as well. We need effective intervention from the people of Kashmir and Jammu. This is a hard time, a difficult time. We must realise that we can not afford to get divided and remain isolated from each other. Jammu and Kashmir must exercise the right to vote in an effective manner and defeat the designs of those who are helping to divide us and come to domesticate us. That is their goal.

Do you see any ray of hope that Statehood gets restored to Jammu and Kashmir soon?

I am very hopeful. The journey might not be as short as you and I may like. But certainly, I have seen ugly nights, longer nights as well. But then I have also experienced the dawn. As long as there is some light at the end of the tunnel, there is hope.

You have held Kulgam since 1996, but won narrowly last time. With J&K’s special status gone, political dynamics have shifted. How confident are you about keeping your seat?

Despite the narrow margin and the presence of bigger players, I managed to win, thanks to the wisdom of the people of Kulgam. And again, as Kulgam is as wise as the rest of our community, they will decide decisively. I hope I will not be disappointed.

Irfan Amin Malik is a journalist based in Jammu and Kashmir.