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Cadres resent CPI-M move to launch TV channel

D Jose in Thiruvananthapuram

The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist's decision in Kerala to mobilise the funds required for launching its proposed television channel from the party cadres has caused considerable resentment in the party.

The party has decided to raise Rs 500 million from its cadres for meeting the capital requirement of the venture aimed at spreading its ideology and views.

The targets fixed by the party for various sections of the card-holders have stunned a majority of the cadres. For instance, the two unions in the Kerala State Electricity Board have been asked to be mobilise a whopping sum of Rs 50 million. The KSEB Workers' Association has to chip in Rs 30 million and the KSEB Officers' Association Rs 20 million.

All the service and mass organisations of the party have been given similar targets.

The collection drive for the television channel has come at a time when the cadres are struggling hard to meet the targets fixed for mobilising funds for holding the fifth national conference of the party's youth wing, the Democratic Youth Federation of India.

The conference is scheduled to be held in Thiruvananthapuram in April this year. The party's service organisations are to collect Rs 3 million towards the DYFI fund.

Last year was tough for the cadres with the party asking them to raise funds for the Kottayam edition of the party newspaper Deshabhimani and the EMS memorial fund.

The cadres are highly critical of the party's tendency to tax them frequently.

The cadres already have to pay a huge levy to retain their membership. A member of the service organisation holding the party card has to pay five per cent of his income as levy. The levy was recently hiked from one per cent to five per cent.

It is compulsory for all party members to pick up at least one share of the public limited company floated to run the television channel. The affluent cadres will have to purchase at least 100 shares. The party has promised to share the profit of the company with the cadres.

However, the party cadres are sceptical about the profitability of the channel that is bound to be viewed as propagandist in nature. Moreover, they expect stiff competition from the two existing channels and a host of other channels in the pipeline.

Though the party intends to make the channel professional by roping in a high-profile media person like Sasi Kumar (of Asianet fame), not many cadres believe that the party would give a free hand to him. The party's print publications do not enjoy this freedom now.

Cadres in several places have started questioning the party order. "Frequent collections are a big burden on ordinary workers, who have to pay a host of taxes, including income tax to the government. A majority of the party workers are leading hand-to-mouth existence," said a card-holder of the party at Thiruvananthapuram.

He said that the party would lose its members if the trend continues. CPI-M members in several places are already reluctant to renew their membership cards.

However, a majority of the party workers have been complying with the party leadership's request because of their unwavering commitment towards the party ideology.

The opposition parties allege that the CPI-M move is a cover to indulge in corruption.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has already launched a secret probe into the wealth amassed by the CPI-M. The Congress had demanded an inquiry into the wealth held by the CPI-M.

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