Communists becoming class conscious?

In the run up to India's independence and immediately after, the communists in India wanted to be recognised as a responsible party looking after the interests and being the sole representatives of the working class and the down trodden. Much of the younger generation, then, was fired by the imagination and joined the movement with zeal and enthusiasm, going through hardship and police brutality in the bargain. Simple living and high thinking were the mainstay and children of affluent parents also joined the movement, making it a potent one, as it encompassed the entire strata of society.

There were numerous instances where girls from affluent families had fallen for the dashing comrades for their idealism, exalted thinking and the strong urge to right the many wrongs rampant in society then. To the question posed by those hapless parents as to why their children were not being spared, the instant answer was that they too were human beings and were naturally influenced by Cupid's ways over which they'd no control!

In 1957, the first communist government had captured power through the ballot in Kerala and since then the party has been a force to reckon with for their opposition in the states of West Bengal and Tripura too, thanks to some imaginative legislation like the land reforms bill etc. But having tasted power, the communists seem to be metamorphosing in retrogade.

Though many examples can be cited for its doublespeak, this latest incident from the sleepy Mylom village of Kollam district in Kerala takes the cake for its sheer audacity! The Panchayat President is a young lady(Minimol) from the CPM cadre and she has been asked by the party's bigwigs to put in her resignation. The reason - she'd the gumption to fall in love with a taxie driver(Jayan) and they've gone ahead and tied the knot despite the displeasure of the local party bosses!!

The party fears that its image will 'suffer a dent' because of the union!!! Since when have the comrades started becoming class conscious? Ample reason for both Marx and Engels to turn in their graves.

Well, as Perry Mason says, 'the prosecution rests'.