Gender Equality Remains Elusive for Kerala CPI-M as Women Leaders Are Marginalized

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 19 (NationPress) As the organisational elections of the Kerala CPI-M are set in motion, party leaders and onlookers shared their worries on Thursday about the insufficient representation of women in the party's internal hierarchy.

Advocates of gender equality within the party expressed hope that a female leader would be appointed to a district unit as the state organisational elections approach a critical phase, following the recent conclusion of the first district party meeting in Kollam.

During the proceedings of the Kollam district committee, there was optimism surrounding the potential elevation of J. Mercykutty, a former minister in the Pinarayi Vijayan cabinet from 2016-2021, for the role of district secretary. However, the outcome saw the current district secretary being asked to remain for another three-year term.

With an additional 13 district committee meetings scheduled in the coming weeks, the sentiment among Kerala CPI-M leaders leans towards pessimism regarding a woman attaining a senior district position.

“The only remaining hope for party leaders is to secure a role in the influential state secretariat - the paramount state-level party body,” expressed a female party leader, who chose to remain anonymous.

Currently, the 17-member state secretariat includes only one woman, and the party's central committee has two women representatives from Kerala.

A media analyst, preferring anonymity, remarked that the CPI-M is often criticized for its rhetoric about gender equality, while its actions suggest otherwise.

“Senior party leaders frequently overlook the advancement of their female colleagues within the party structure, as few dare to voice their concerns due to party discipline,” he commented.

Supporters of former Health Minister K.K. Shailaja argue that she has a strong chance of climbing the organisational ladder, but whether a female leader from Kerala can carve out a position for herself in the new Politburo remains to be seen.

A new Politburo is anticipated to be chosen by the freshly constituted Central Committee during the upcoming 24th Party Congress scheduled for 2025 in Madurai.

Kerala Left leaders also point out the party's history of poor representation of women leaders and reference the Congress party, which has appointed women as district committee heads.

Proponents of gender equality within CPI-M argue that over the past sixty years, there has not been a single female party Chief Minister, a woman as party secretary, nor has any woman served as a district secretary in any of the current 14 district committees.

Interestingly, on two occasions, a female CPI-M leader narrowly missed becoming chief minister. The first was the outspoken K.R. Gouri, who was edged out by E.K. Nayanar in 1987.

Later, in 1994, she was expelled from the CPI-M and went on to establish her own party, the Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi (JSS), serving as Agriculture Minister from 2001 to 2006 in the cabinets of A.K. Antony and Oommen Chandy.

Susheela Gopalan, spouse of the iconic Communist leader and the first Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, A.K. Gopalan, also came close to the Chief Minister role in 2001, but Nayanar was selected by the party for the position.

Notably, Nayanar did not even contest the 2001 elections; after assuming the Chief Minister position, he subsequently won a by-election to secure his legislative seat.