People's Democracy

ANDHRA PRADESH

Foundation Stone Laid To New Complex Of

Sundarayya Vignana Kendram

Call To Fight Against The Danger Of Communal Forces  

                                                                        M Venugopala Rao

Yechury laying the foundation stone

SITARAM Yechury, Polit Bureau member of the CPI(M), laid the foundation stone to the new complex of Sundarayya Vignana Kendram at Gachi Bowli at the outskirts of Hyderabad to house its library, research and cultural heritage centre for which the state government allotted four-acre land. Harkishan Singh Surjeet, member of the Polit Bureau, who was to lay the foundation stone, could not come due to reasons of health. 

Addressing a well-attended meeting organised on the occasion, union minister for human resource development Arjun Singh said Sundarayya was a great freedom fighter, who became a legend in his own life time. During the freedom struggle he was a part of that visionary group of leaders all over the country who had made the fight against colonial power their first objective.  Today, India was independent and keeping its head high in the comity of nations because of the sacrifices, struggles and contributions of great leaders like P Sundarayya, he said.  Sundarayya was regarded as the Communist Gandhi; he had joined the ‘Simon go back agitation’ on the call given by Gandhiji after the historic Dandi yatra, he explained.  When large sections of the Indian people were living in abject poverty, when repression and discrimination were part of daily life and when toiling millions of the country could not get a meal every day, that situation had attracted young people, who were socially conscious and committed to egalitarian society and they had taken up the cause of the dispossessed as one of their main objective, explained Arjun Singh. Sundarayya wanted socialist society to be ushered in after independence. During the freedom struggle the Left ideas had gained considerable influence and the communists were the main forces behind several organisations floated by the Congress then, he said.

Referring to the trauma of partition of the country and the rise of communal forces, Arjun Singh said the RSS fostered all evil forces and the first victim was Gandhiji.  He exhorted that we had to fight that evil and warned that we were sadly mistaken if we thought that the danger of communal forces had subsided. All the reactionary forces, which did not see eye to eye with egalitarian society, were with the RSS and trying to influence the body politic, he cautioned. The common people had seen through the mischief of those forces, Arjun Singh said and pointed out that the United Progressive Alliance was leading the country and that it was not incidental that it had the support of the Leftist forces in the country. There was the real danger the reactionary forces pose to the freedom and future of our country, he said. The sacrifices made by leaders like Sundarayya should guide the young generation and every effort should be made to ensure the defeat of the communal forces in the country, said Arjun Singh.

Sitaram Yechury in his address said Comrade Sundarayya was a great revolutionary leader, a red star in the communist movement in the country and a prominent leader in the international communist movement. Sitaram recollected that the CPI(M), which was formed against revisionism, and was dubbed as extremist by the then Soviet Union and as revisionist by the Communist Party of China, was isolated in the international communist movement for 20 years and faced repression within the country. Sundarayya had explained that it was the internal strength, the strength of ideology and principles, of making specific analysis of specific conditions with which we could build the Party and march forward, said Yechury while recollecting his association with Comrade Sundarayya. Now all the people, including those who had termed it revisionist, had realised that the biggest communist movement in the country had emerged under the leadership of the CPI(M), he said. SVK’s research centre would be useful in a big way in the entire country for such a study of specific analysis of specific conditions to fulfil revolutionary aspirations, said Yechury.

Agreeing with the view expressed by Arjun Singh, Yechury said it would be an illusion to think that the danger of communalism was over simply because the communal forces were out of power. Those forces were continuing their conspiracy against the country’s unity and integrity, he warned and stressed the need for attacking the communal danger ideologically, apart from directly facing the attacks and atrocities of the communal forces. Referring to the attempts made by the communal forces during the six-year NDA regime to change the system of education and history with their communal ideology, Yechury explained that they had tried in vain to prove that the Hindus were the first to exist in the country, that India was a Hindu Rashtra and that all the other people belonging to other religions were secondary citizens. The communal forces tried, though futilely, to establish that Indus valley civilisation itself was the Aryan civilisation.  Apart from fighting the communal forces in the political field, in order to rebut their attempts to distort history there was every need to study and discuss the issue in a scientific manner, he said. SVK’s reserach centre would be a big contribution for such a study of political developments and history, said Yechury.

Comrade Sundarayya used to assert that humanism was an important quality of Marxism and that nothing human was alien to him, recollected Yechury. One had to be a humanist, a good human being first before becoming a Marxist, Comrade Sundarayya used to tell. Yechury explained that Comrade Sundarayya made serious efforts for rehabilitation of the families of the martyrs of the heroic Telangana armed struggle. Reminding the audience of the simplicity of Comrade Sundarayya, Yechury recollected that he used to come to parliament by bicycle and keep it at the cycle stand, which is no more in existence now.

In his speech, the text of which was sent in advance, Harkishan Singh Surjeet narrated his association with Comrade P Sundarayya.  The CPI(M) was proud of the innumerable dedicated revolutionaries who had served the cause of the working class and social revolution for decades together, proved their revolutionary mettle in face of all sorts of trials and tribulations, and made immense sacrifices for the cause they had stood for, said Surjeet. Yet, Comrade Sundarayya was a unique example of a communist. He was a man of the masses, had a firm grasp on the theory of Marxism-Leninism, and also had the organisational skills of a professional revolutionary, explained Surjeet. Sundarayya had inspired thousands of our countrymen to dedicate their life to the cause of national liberation and socialism. He was a man who always translated words into deeds, and a man the common people of Andhra Pradesh had always been proud of. Comrade Sundarayya had certain qualities that had made him a towering figure of the communist movement.  He had an unwavering faith in Marxism-Leninism, confidence in the Party of the working class to lead the revolution, love for the cadres about whom he had always felt concerned, and affection for his colleagues. His way of life was that of a true communist revolutionary. Those qualities, not commonly seen, were very much necessary for communists who had to fulfil the sacred task of successfully effecting a social revolution, emphasised Surjeet. After joining the Party, Sundarayya had handed over his entire property to it, and the Party was his only property at the time of his death. He was never carried away by bourgeois influences. Those who had seen him in 1937 had found him the same later when he was an outstanding national leader, explained Surjeet. He loved the masses and was always happy to be with them. Learning from the masses was his motto and the way to integrate the Marxist theory with practice. He had won the hearts of all those, communists and non-communists, who had come in touch with him during his long political career of 55 years. Comrade Sundarayya would always be remembered as a staunch Marxist, as a freedom fighter, as a selfless worker in the cause of the downtrodden, and his memory would always be cherished and his selfless service to the cause of the revolution would always inspire those fighting for the same cause, so saying Surjeet concluded his speech paying homage to Comrade Sundarayya.

Koratala Satyanarayana, Managing Trustee of the Sundarayya Vignana Kendram Trust and member of the central committee of the CPI(M), in his presidential address thanked the state government for giving the land for SVK’s new complex. Comrade Sundarayya, a renowned freedom fighter, first opposition leader in the Indian parliament, a researcher and a writer, was one of the topmost leaders of the communist movement in India and a builder of various popular movements for the cause of industrial workers and agricultural labour, particularly in South India, explained Koratala. Comrade Sundarayya was one of the important leaders of the heroic Telangana armed struggle of the peasants that had given the slogan of “land to the tiller” thus laying foundation for the land reforms in independent India.  The movement for “Visalandhra” (united Andhra Pradesh) that culminated in the formation of linguistic states was his achievement, he said.

Sundarayya Vignana Kendram was formed in 1988 to carry forward the ideals of Comrade Sundarayya. Explaining the multifarious activities of the Kendram, Koratala said the new reserarch and cultural heritage centre was being built for public use and appealed to donors and the central and state governments to come forward and help the Trust in this noble task.

The chief minister, Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, who could not participate in the programme due to some mistake done by his office staff in fixing his programmes, had deputed two of his ministers.  The minister for finance, K Rosaiah, said he was one of those who were influenced by the way Sundarayya, as the leader of the opposition in the legislative assembly, used to conduct himself democratically, raising public issues and questions and making sharp and constructive criticism whenever the government committed a mistake. Sundarayya was a great leader who used to practise what he believed in and then tell others. Changing his original name, which indicated a caste, Sundarayya demonstrated that there was no importance to the caste. He was a great leader who felt that the entire society was his family and decided against having children so as not to divert his attention and efforts in the political field, said Rosaiah.  He further said what he liked in the communists were their sincerity, honesty and commitment. Saying that the programmes of the  Communists were simple and intended for the benefit of all, Rosaiah asserted that the government had given the land to SVK’s new complex because they were doing a good job and promised to continue the government’s support to it.   Ponnala Lakshmaiah, the minister for major irrigation, said programmes like the present one would remind the spirit with which struggles were conducted in the past with the objective of making the poor partners in the country’s wealth and achieving equality.

Earlier Sitaram Yechury and Arjun Singh garlanded the portrait of Comrade Sundarayya. Polit Bureau member of the CPI(M) B V Raghavulu, members of the Parliament P Madhu, Dr M Babu Rao (CPI-M), K Sambasiva Rao, A Madhu, and Nandi Yelliah (Congress), Nomula Narsimhaiah, leader of the CPI(M) legislature party, and Dr KVP Ramachandra Rao, advisor to the state government, also participated in the programme. C Sambi Reddy, secretary of the Kendram welcomed the gathering and  Dr A Murali, member of the Trust, proposed a vote of thanks.