Old guards paves way for youth in Bengal CPI(M)

Signalling a major shift in the party, several old guards of the CPI(M) West Bengal unit on Thursday stepped down from various committees, paving way for induction of young leaders in important decision-making bodies.

During the first day of the crucial two-day state committee meet of the CPI(M) in presence of general secretary Sitaram Yechury, several senior state secretariat leaders stepped down due to health and age-old problems.

Senior leader and former minister Gautam Deb, Manab Mukherjee, Dipak Dasgupta and Nripen Chowdhury stepped down from the CPI(M) state secretariat -- the party's highest decision-making body at the state level.

Kallol Majumdar, Palash Das, Sumit De and two others -- all within the age bracket of 40-50 -- were inducted in the state secretariat.

Eight other leaders from various frontal organisations of the CPI(M), such as DYFI and SFI, were inducted in the state committees. All of them within the age group of 30-40.

"We are on a process of a major overhaul of our organisation in the state by replacing the old guard with new blood at all levels to send out a message. The changes that took place today are just part of it," a senior CPI(M) leader said.

The CPI(M)-led Left Front, which ruled West Bengal for an uninterrupted three decades since 1977, drew a blank in the 2019 Lok Sabha election and lost deposits on 40 of the 42 seats in the state.

Facing strong challenges from the ruling Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party, the CPI(M) is revamping the party organisation at all levels.