Chennai: CPI (M) politburo member Prakash Karat on Monday called upon Communists to draw lessons from the collapse of socialist experiment in Soviet Union to move towards renewed and renovated form of socialism in the 21st century
“End of Soviet Union was end of socialist experiment. We have to draw lessons from its failure. Despite its tremendous achievements and potential which was there in the world’s first socialist state, various defects came into being and various distortions in the development of socialism in Soviet Union. We have to draw lessons from that to move towards renewed and renovated form of socialism in the 21stCentury,” Mr Karat said inaugurating his party’s Tamil Nadu unit’s year-long centenary of 1917 October Revolution in Russia here.
Stating that this is not the time to discuss the reason for the Soviet’s failure as his party decided to hold the centenary celebration till November 7 next year, he said, “In the one year, we shall involve all Left-minded progressive minds in the country to discuss how we can advance towards struggle for socialism in India. What should be socialism that we must strive for heree? These are issues we have to discuss in the centenary year.”
Explaining the significance of the Russian revolution, he said that October 1917 marked a new epoch in human history – the transition from capitalism to socialism. “This was the first revolution in the world made by the working people and led by the working class,” he said, pointing out that all other revolution that happened before 1917 including French Revolution in 1789 saw one exploiting class replacing another. He said that it marked the end of old style colonialism in the world and opened the floodgates of liberation struggles across the world including in Indian against colonialism and imperialism.
Veteran communist leaders N. Sankariah and R. Nallakannu, CPI (M) state secretary G. Ramakrishnan, educationist Vasanthi Devi, writer S. Ramakrishnan and film director Raju Murugan also spoke.
