All over the world and certainly in India too, the exploited masses endure their daily hardships with the dream that capitalist exploitation will end one day. No matter how many crises we go through, including the temporary collapse of socialism, Revolution is inevitable. Herein lies the moral force of revolution; freedom from exploitation will be achieved only through revolution. That is, the question of emancipation from exploitation is inextricably linked to the transformation of the capitalist state apparatus which presently works as an armed guard of the conventional capitalist production system. The great comrade Lenin taught us – “The fundamental question of every revolution is the question of state power.” The working class has a long way to go before achieving the final victory in this great struggle for the revolutionary transformation of state power.
One mass movement after another has to be organized with the right perspective of class struggle. Through this path alone, one day in the future, the revolution of the exploited people will see the light of success.
It must be remembered that the current stage in the long journey of the revolutionary struggle is at the level of the democratic movement. At this stage, a joint movement by the revolutionary party and the genuine left and democratic forces against the main forces that protect the overall interest of the capitalist class – through whose turn taking in the electoral politics, the capitalist class has kept their governing power and exploitation solid and intact – is a historic need. It is not opportunism by any means.
Those who have more power as leftists should realize the need for a united movement free of opportunism. As long as the level of democratic movement lasts, that is, until the exploited class acquires adequate political and organizational capacity to seize state power, this joint movement must be judged as a necessary tool of struggle ‘rather than for temporary gain’. It is the call of time in our country.
On the basis of political consciousness, we know that our society is a class society. On one side, there is the ruling capitalist class and on the other side is the exploited and oppressed class. The ruling class gains the most from this system of production. So they want this system to last for as long as possible, and they make full use of the electoral system to that end. They put an associate political force in government power to protect their own vested interests. When the public is outraged against it, the ruling class presents another force to the public as an alternative with the help of the media they control and establishes them in government power through the electoral process. This way, they create a polarization between these two political alternatives and drives the public attention towards which force will win or can win in the election rather than party policy, ideals and ethics.
They have been implementing this strategy since a long time. They use such electoral politics to hide the capitalist exploitation and the role of the state apparatus from public view. This is the strategy of bourgeois democracy. In this context, Comrade Lenin showed us the truth more than a hundred years ago. He said, “Every once in a while the ruling class gives the people the right to decide who will rule and exploit them for years to come.”
We have seen in our country the game of change of government by exercising this right. But despite these successive changes, there is no liberation from exploitation and oppression. This is a hard reality. Again, this is true that as long as the revolutionary coup of the people does not happen, the public will be involved in the election process and the revolutionary leftist party will participate in the election because of the need to be with the public. But their point of view must be completely different from the bourgeois point of view. They will also manage the election in the perspective of mass movement. This is the Leninist teaching.
Another important question in the context of movement must be adhered to by all participating energies. A joint movement means the inclusion of multiple left and democratic forces. Every party or force operates with a policy. They believe in that principle. Based on that they formulate their program. These forces differ even about the revolutionary process of a country. This is normal. Nevertheless, a united resistance against the vested interests of the monopoly capitalists is the aim of the joint movement. For this purpose they unite among themselves on the basis of a “Common Agreed Minimum Programme”. There remain some ideological differences, often in a subtle sense, in shaping the movement. Conflict around ideological questions within the unity, in fact, follows from the principles of conflictual materialism. Unity never means unity without any struggle at all. It also doesn’t mean abuse, blasphemy, or hate speech at the slightest lack of perfect agreement. The masses are enriched with political consciousness through experiencing ideological struggle within the associated movements. They can recognize the true nature of revolutionary power.
So it is said – “Unity Struggle Unity” is the proper Marxist view of the joint movement. Some feel that ideological struggles lead to misunderstandings among grassroots workers and can lead to disruption of unity. But it can be said emphatically that misunderstandings or disunity do not occur at the grassroots level, it rather happens at the leadership level. There is no denying that fact in current events. Remember the teachings of the great Mao Tse Tung. He said, “if unity is sought, it will live, if unity is sought through yielding, it will perish…
However, there are still many who do not understand it, some think that struggle will split the united front or that struggle can be employed without restraint. … All this must be corrected.”
Hence, for the complete victory of revolutionary movement in a country, a joint movement is as important as conducting an intense ideological struggle within it. It is, however, a necessary pre-requisite. Many people think that the revolutionary and mass movement is being harmed by this ideological struggle. But the history of the revolutionary movement does not say so. Remember, the great Engels said, “The development of the proletariat proceeds everywhere amidst internal struggles… And when like Marx and myself, one has fought harder all one’s life long against the alleged socialists than against any one else.”
In the history of the Russian Revolution, the great Lenin continued his ideological struggle against other parties and forces even within the joint movement against tsarism. A proper understanding of this aspect of united struggle is essential for all of us.
In the present international and national situation, the flag of Marxism-Leninism, the blood-stained red flag of the peasant laborers, is to be upheld against the vested forces of monopoly capitalism – who have been consolidating the exploitative capitalist system ever since the independence of this country through the transfer of power. A united movement of genuine democratic and secular forces is the demand of the present time.
It must also be remembered that, in the present era, monopoly capitalism tries to create a counter-revolutionary coup d’état by creating hysteria among the masses against the inevitable proletarian revolution of the future – that is the nature of fascism. Fascism is brought about by the capitalist class, sometimes through maintaining a party, sometimes through a leader, or even a parliament. They want to develop blind emotions and destroy the atmosphere of healthy argumentation. Avoiding the path of ideological struggle within a joint movement strengthens the hand of fascism, albeit unconsciously. Fascism strikes where people think. It obstructs the process of human development – a warning from Marxist philosopher Shivdas Ghosh.
Moreover, in the absence of an appropriate atmosphere for having arguments, the polarizing forces of the capitalist class are presented to the public as alternatives to each other. But the only and proper alternative is organized left wing movement and democratic movement involving the masses. Therefore, we all have to play a leading role in building and advancing the unity of the struggling Left and democratic forces. The history of the struggles of mankind presents that claim. We have to respond with proper class consciousness – that is the call of the hour.
