The life and political career of Marian Alexander Baby (71), the new General Secretary of the CPI(M), closely mirrors most of his predecessors who held that office. Born to a middle class family and drawn to Communism from his school days, Baby's journey has been shaped by struggle, sacrifice, integrity, eloquence, and ideological conviction — qualities that have steadily propelled his rise within the party ranks.

Despite the barbs that the party's name CPI(M) now stands for CPI (Malayali), Baby’s ascent carries several unique dimensions -personal, political and social- some of which even his party may not openly acknowledge. First, he enters history books as the highest leader of India's largest Left party in its centenary year. Second, Baby’s tryst with destiny comes when the Indian Left is standing on its weakest legs, with only his native Kerala still holding the red flag aloft. Third, Baby is only the third non-Hindu among the 15 general secretaries who have led the CPI and CPI(M) over the past hundred years—parties that have been among the most vocal champions of secularism and pluralism. The other two are CPI(M)’s third General Secretary, Harkishen Singh Surjeet, a Sikh, and CPI’s current General Secretary D. Raja, a Dalit Christian. Finally, Baby, born into a Latin Catholic family, is CPI(M)’s first general secretary from a non-upper-caste background. If one includes CPI as well, he is only the second such figure across both parties. Notably, D Raja remains the only Dalit to have ever held the position of General Secretary in the hundred-year-long history of mainstream Indian Communism—ironically, a movement long associated with the cause of the downtrodden.

Many may question whether these points hold any real significance. Such skepticism could come from both within the Left as well as from its critics. The Left often downplays the importance of individual leadership, viewing personality as secondary in a class-based movement. Meanwhile, its critics may dismiss these........

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