Communist Party of India (Marxist)

The Amritsar Congress of the CPI in 1958, saw a tussle between the ultra-leftists who rejected the constitutional methods and wanted to work for people’s democracy of the Chinese model, and the moderates recognized the need for ‘unity and struggle’ with the Congress. Then in 1959 the Congress government dismissed the Kerala government which shook the confidence of the communists. Then came the Chinese aggression of 1962 dislocating much of the national and communist politics. In India, this led to the split in the CPI in 1964.

The West Bengal and the Kerala units of the CPI which had a solid base supported by electoral victories, became the nucleus for the formation of the Communists party of India (Marxist) or CPI(M).