Professor Amiya Bagchi warned the present leadership against any understanding with the Congress in the West Bengal Assembly elections.

Blaming the CPI(M) leadership for the party’s downfall, eminent economic-historian Amiya Bagchi, considered the party’s ideologue, has said that unless the leaders controlled their “love for money and power”, the party will not be able to register a comeback.

Without naming anyone, Professor Bagchi blamed the former general secretaries for the party’s downfall. He warned the present leadership against any understanding with the Congress in the West Bengal Assembly elections.

In an interview to The Hindu, Professor Bagchi, 79, who taught in nearly a dozen universities across the world, criticised the CPI(M) leaders for their excessive love for “money and power”.

“Many of the Left MLAs are joining the Trinamool Congress as they cannot be without power and money. Tapas Chatterjee, the leader from North 24 Parganas, joined the TMC. Did the party leadership not know about his questionable credentials? But he was allowed to grow in a Communist party. Unless they let go of their love for power and money, there is no future for the Left,” he said. “However, there are honest Leftists, like Kanti Ganguly in South 24 Parganas. Such people should be encouraged in the party.”

He slammed the former general secretaries without naming them.

“I have issues with previous general secretaries of the CPI(M). Why have they been so outstandingly powerful in the party? What have they done? Have they won any election? Have people given them power? [They] sidelined a popular, grassroots leader in Kerala, V.S. Achuthanandan, and the Left lost the last election,” Professor Bagchi said.

He said the CPI(M) should not go with the Congress.

“The Congress is not a party; it is run by a family and the Left has always opposed such politics. This road to neoliberal India is created by the Congress and we need to question them,” he said and added that if the Left ever formed an alliance with the Congress, “the little credibility [it has] will disappear”.

Professor Bagchi said the Indian Left had much to learn from Latin American countries which formed broad-based platforms driven by day-to-day issues.

“In Ecuador, for example, Rafael Correa managed to bring together many groups — who could be his competitors — highlighting the issues against the American brand of capitalism. They did not form a party initially, but pushed the issues forward highlighting the rights of the individuals and the communities and slowly formed an issue-based anti-capitalist front. The Left in India may think of a similar strategy,” the Professor said. He appealed to the Left to raise issues which were relevant.

“The Central government is discouraging small savings. People from lower-income groups visit post offices to deposit modest amounts in small savings schemes. As such schemes are discouraged, commission agents are losing money; small investors are deprived of investment opportunities. Lack of investment opportunities is encouraging dubious chit funds. The Left needs to highlight such issues,” Professor Bagchi said.