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CPM Tests New Youth-Focused Politics After Cockroach Movement Success
The CPM is trying new ways to speak with young people in West Bengal.
Instead of only holding rallies, it is using cultural events and informal discussions.
One event in Barasat brought together a few hundred young people.
They talked about education, jobs, nationalism, communism and social freedom.
The event was partly inspired by recent youth-led protests in Delhi.
CPM leaders hope these activities will rebuild support among Generation Z. However, the party says many young people join protests without becoming party members.
The CPM is also competing with the BJP and RSS over ideas about identity, education and nationalism.
The CPM held a Barasat event, #PrajanmerDaak, to engage young people through discussions, culture and social issues.
The programme drew a few hundred youths who discussed communism, nationalism, unemployment, education, resistance and alternative media.
The initiative was influenced by the Cockroach Janta Party movement and the Jantar Mantar protests over NEET irregularities.
The CPM is using the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Cultural Centre to promote political discussion in formats beyond rallies and meetings.
The party’s organisational report recorded declining youth representation in West Bengal and acknowledged difficulties recruiting young members.
- Who
- The Communist Party of India (Marxist), its youth and student leaders, and young participants, including Aishe Ghosh, Dipsita Dhar and others.
- What
- The CPM organized #PrajanmerDaak, a youth-focused political and cultural discussion in Barasat.
- Where
- Rabindra Bhawan auditorium in Barasat, West Bengal, with the initiative drawing on protests at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
- When
- The event took place on a Thursday; the article also refers to Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation on July 25 and the CPM’s party Congress held the previous year.
- Why
- The CPM wants to reach Generation Z, rebuild its support base and address declining youth recruitment through forms of political engagement beyond conventional rallies and meetings.
CPM and Left Perspective
BJP-RSS Perspective Described by Critics
Political language and youth outreach
CPM and Left Perspective
The CPM says young people can be reached through culture, informal debates, social issues and unconventional protests rather than only rallies and party programmes.
BJP-RSS Perspective Described by Critics
The article does not include a direct BJP or RSS response, but describes the CPM as seeking to challenge their influence among younger people.
Nationalism and student activism
CPM and Left Perspective
CPM-linked speakers argued that demands for freedom from hunger and unemployment are not anti-national and accused the BJP and RSS of promoting a misleading nationalist narrative.
BJP-RSS Perspective Described by Critics
The article says BJP and RSS supporters have tagged Jadavpur University students as anti-national, but it does not provide their detailed justification or response.
Youth participation versus party membership
CPM and Left Perspective
CPM and SFI leaders say increasing youth participation in street protests shows that resistance to the BJP-RSS combine is growing.
BJP-RSS Perspective Described by Critics
The article reports that youth participation in protests has not yet translated into equivalent recruitment into the CPM, highlighting the limits of the party’s current outreach.
Key facts
- Event
- #PrajanmerDaak, or “Call of the Generation”
- Location
- Rabindra Bhawan auditorium, Barasat
- Attendance
- A few hundred young people
- Key topics
- Communism, nationalism, unemployment, education, resistance and alternative media
- Cultural platform
- Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee Cultural Centre
- Youth membership in West Bengal
- The CPM report said youth composition declined from 8.7 percent to 8.2 percent
- Political context
- The initiative followed youth-led activity linked to the Cockroach Janta Party and Jantar Mantar protests
Quotes
Senior CPM leader
A senior CPM leader who attended the Barasat event.
“The BJP and the RSS, in the name of nationalism, are trying to propagate a wrong narrative by tagging JU students as anti-national. But a call for freedom from hunger and unemployment can’t be termed as speaking against the nation.”
telegraphindia.com
“It is a special endeavour to prove that without the conventional ways of movement like rallies and meetings, youths can be reached in other ways too. #PrajanmerDaak was a reflection of that call.”
telegraphindia.com
Sources
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