CPI (M) expels Somnath Chatterjee from party

By John Cheeran
Finally CPI (M) has acted against Somnath Chatterjee by expelling the veteran comrade who fell in love with limelight in his twilight.
There is no surprise in the decision taken by the CPI (M).
Surprise was the long rope given to the Bengal comrade by the Party General Secretary Prakash Karat, despite defying and embarrassing the party during a critical ideological battle against the ruling Congress.
Somnath now will continue as the Lok Sabha Speaker, and his last supper will be prepared by both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Madam Sonia Gandhi.
Again, I'm quite happy to see that the UPA survived the Trust Vote yesterday in the Parliament and the nuclear deal with the United States would be taken to its logical finish. It's a pity that Karat and comrades cannot invent a party line beyond the Anti-American slogan.
That does not exonerate Somnath from his crimes against the Party. The cheap stunt that Somnath put up over the week and during the Trust Vote debate should shame not only any comrade but anyone who has ventured into political life.
Anyone can fullfil a school master's role.
CPI (M)'s woes, however, do not end with the expulsion of Somnath. These are challenging times for the party and Karat has an onerous task ahead of him to position Indian communists in the Post-American world while swimming against the tide in the company of Mayawatis and Chandrababu Naidus.