People's Democracy

ONLY a good human being can be a good communist, and communists have indeed offered shining examples of sacrifice and martyrdom. We have to give a fitting reply to the activities of the criminals and goondas. We have to fulfil Comrade Ramnath Mahato’s dreams by the overthrowing the feudal-capitalist system based on exploitation and injustice. This was what CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury said while paying glowing tributes to late Comrade Mahato at a huge Pledge Rally organised at Sakh Mohan High School at Vibhutipur village in Samastipur district of Bihar on February 19. The rally was attended by more than 20,000 party workers and supporters. They included peasants, workers, youth and women --- carrying red flags and banners, armed with traditional weapons.

It will be noted that Comrade Ramnath Mahato, a leader of agricultural workers in Bihar, was killed by some criminals patronised by the landlords of the area and by the police and administration, on January 31.

Yechury said the party was proud of martyrs like Comrade Ramnath Mahato who led the poor peasants and agricultural workers in their struggle against hunger, poverty and injustice, even though he himself was poor and deprived of even basic necessities. Comrade Mahato led a simple life. He was an exceptional organiser and mature teacher of Marxism-Leninism. Yechury urged the rallyists, whose faces reflected a deep-seated anger over Comrade Mahato’s assassination, to build party organisation in villages and develop a massive struggle so as to isolate the criminals and their landlord patrons.

Addressing the rally, CPI(M) Central Secretariat member and AIAWU joint secretary Hannan Mollah said a communist never dies. He said Comrade Mahato had endeared himself to millions by building the party organisation at village level, among the most oppressed, exploited and poor. This was clear from the presence of thousands of agricultural workers and peasants at the rally and their determination to emulate his example. He declared from the stage that if the police failed to bring the murderers to book, the common and poor people of the area would never spare them.

AIAWU general secretary A Vijayaraghvan said one could assassinate an individual but never an ideology. He said the voice against exploitation and injustice can never be suppressed, and that the martyrdom of a communist gives birth to a thousand communists. He urged the rallyists to learn from Comrade Mahato’s example and strengthen the columns of the red flag.

Paying tributes to Comrade Mahato, Bihar CPI(M) secretary Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi detailed Comrade Mahato’s contribution to building the party in Bihar, in Samastipur in particular. He said Comrade Mahato’s assassination was an open challenge held out by criminals and goons, and that a fitting reply to them would be a true tribute to the departed leader. CPI(M) Central Committee member Subodh Roy too underscored the need to develop a strong party organisation and to isolate the criminals.

CPI(M) legislature party leader and state Kisan Sabha president Ramdev Verma said the police had not apprehended the culprits even 19 days after the murder. He warned that the patience of the working people was wearing thin and they would be forced to do something soon.

Others who addressed the rally included the CPI(M)’s Jharkhand state secretary Jnan Shankar Majumdar, state Kisan Sabha secretary Vijay Kant Takur, state AIAWU president Sarangdhar Paswan, AIKS joint secretary Nand Kishor Shukla, and state JMS president Sudha Vindu Mitra. On this occasion, leaders of the party and various mass organisations also went to Comrade Mahato’s house and offered condolences to his old mother and other family members.

The Pledge Rally organised by the Samastipur district committee of the CPI(M) was an unprecedented political event. The venue of the rally, close to Comrade Mahato’s house, is about 42 km from the district headquarters, the shortest distance of this place from a railhead being 15 or 16 km. Yet, braving the tortuous journey involved, thousands of people from all across the state participated in the rally ---not only to listen to their leaders but also to seek solutions to the questions that have been thrown up by the murder of a Marxist saint like Comrade Mahato. The rallyists expressed their collective anger in an organised way and demanded restoration of the rule of law.

This huge participation of people from all sections of society was a rich tribute to a communist who was fearless, even though unarmed. It demonstrated that a communist touches the heights of humanity even if he is born in a poor family and that he can sacrifice everything for the oppressed and deprived sections of society.