Former Tripura CM prefers ‘Namaste’ over ‘Red Salute’ in paying homage to late leaders

CPI-M politburo member and the former Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, at the first day of the party’s 27th state conference in West Bengal on Saturday, chose to opt for the traditional ‘Namaste’ rather than Communist-trademark of ‘red salute’ while paying his homage to two deceased party leader namely former general secretary Late Sitaram Yechury and the former West Bengal Chief Minister Late Buddha Bhattacharjee.

However, all the other delegates present at the state conference stuck to their own traditional methods of paying homage through “red salute,” while paying homage to leaders.

Although officially there was no explanation from any party leader on this different stance of the former Tripura Chief Minister, a party leader close to him that Sarkar said that the latter always follows the practice of traditional “Namaste” when it comes to paying homage to the deceased individuals including party leaders.

The 27th state conference of the party is especially crucial considering that from the event the new leadership in the form of the new state committee will be selected that will lead the party for the crucial state Assembly elections in 2026.

Starting from Saturday, the 27th state conference of the party will continue till February 25 and end with an open session where the new state committee of the party will be announced.

The two main focuses of the state conference will be on how to revive the traditional vote bank of CPI-M among minority as well as socially and economically backward classes as well as draw out a strategy on how to combat the growing trend of binary polarisation of politics in West Bengal between the Trinamool Congress and BJP.

In the party's latest internal document, which analysed the election strategy, the CPI-M leadership had admitted that Trinamool Congress has emerged as the biggest beneficiary of this trend of binary polarisation in the state.

"In West Bengal, the party has been fighting the Trinamool Congress and BJP for the past decade. While doing so, the party at all levels must pay more attention to counter the BJP politically and ideologically. This is important since secular-minded people see the Trinamool Congress as an effective counter to the BJP because of the binary politics," the CPI-M's internal document read.