The Sickle Within

After a brief battle for turf, Achuthanandan went on to become the CM. But six months into power, he is a shadow of the man he was during his election campaign. The 83-year-old Comrade VS is, according to CPI(M) insiders, a leader under siege. Pushed to a corner by a powerful faction in his own party. Distrusted by many of in the rank and file. Unsure of support from the central leadership. And constantly being reminded by the media that he is failing to deliver on his promises. Such are the pressures and expectations from Achuthanandan’s famed strongman image has taken a severe beating. Even his sympathisers have begun to wonder at the change that has come over him after assuming office.

Much of Achuthanandan’s troubles come from one quarter—the powerful CPI(M) state secretary, Pinarayi Vijayan. The two have never seen eye-to-eye; Achuthanandan’s becoming CM has only intensified their tussle. Jocularly referred to as a snake-and-mongoose fight, the power struggle between the two threatens to corrode the very credibility of the state’s Left government.

Here are some recent manifestations of this factionalism:

• A file relating to an ADB loan pending with the CM was forwarded to the Kerala resident commissioner in New Delhi who signed it and passed it on to the central government. This was done without Achuthanandan’s knowledge. He now says that he had kept the file on hold pending comments. According to sources close to Achuthanandan, the file was moved by the liberal lobby in the CPI(M) which has the backing of Vijayan.
  
• Take the case of IG Rishiraj Singh who heads the state’s anti-piracy squad (APS). He was not only prevented from raiding the music studio owned by the wife of another IG but was also taken off the APS by DGP Raman Srivastava. A livid Achuthanandan, on reading about it in newspapers, even asked his home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, a lieutenant of Pinarayi, to reinstate Rishiraj. But nothing happened for two days. Balakrishnan denies the CM ever phoned him. But Achuthanandan told Outlook: "I had rung him up promptly and given the directive. That’s the truth."
  
• The CM has twice sought the politburo’s clearance to prosecute Vijayan. He cited the CAG report on the loss of Rs 98 crore to the exchequer in the SNC Lavalin power deal. Vijayan had inked the agreement with the Canadian company in 1998 when he was power minister—and one of the conditions was that Lavalin would pay Rs 98 crore for setting up a cancer centre. This money was allegedly siphoned off. The Lavalin scam continues to be a contentious issue.
  
• The CM wants to recover tax arrears worth Rs 5,750 crore from private lotteries. His officials and lawyers believe the online and single-digit lotteries owe the Kerala government this money. However, finance minister T.M. Thomas Issac, also of the Vijayan camp, didn’t even factor this tax revenue in his budget, making light of the CM’s efforts. The result: lotteries of other states are selling in Kerala, in violation of the central law.

So why is Achuthanandan hanging in if the lobby against him is so powerful? One explanation is that he is so popular with the cadres that an early change wouldn’t go down well and could bring party workers out on the streets. But the buzz is that there is a move on to slowly marginalise Achuthanandan-backers within the organisation. This would further weaken him, making a change of guard more smooth—even justifiable.