M. A. Baby | Congenial comrade

M. A. Baby
| Photo Credit: Illustration: Sreejith R. Kumar

In a political landscape ruled by grandstanding and strategising, Mariam Alexander Baby’s election as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was as quiet as it was resolute. After remaining in the shadows for several years, he emerged as the right choice for the role at the 24th Party Congress held in Madurai. He is the second leader from Kerala, after E.M.S Namboodiripad, to assume the role.

Mr. Baby’s political career is marked by an unwavering commitment to the Left ideology, which also worked as an ideal compass guiding his journey. His congeniality, his comrades say, has not been a carefully crafted performance, but an inherent trait facilitating better communication, even across political lines.

Born into a Latin Christian family at Prakkulam in Kerala’s Kollam district, Mr. Baby’s political journey began during his formative years as a member of the Kerala Students Federation, the precursor to the Students Federation of India (SFI). Sree Narayana College, Kollam, where he pursued his higher studies, played an integral part in shaping the politician and individual that he is. His contemporaries remember him as a true-blue Marxist, a bibliophile and a cineaste, and a comrade with deep appreciation for arts and literature.

The 1970s presented a challenging landscape for Left-leaning student movements and his leadership evolved within this fiery crucible of student politics. There was fervent activism and arrests as he rose through the ranks, becoming the State president of the SFI in 1975. He was a 20-year-old at that time, and within months he faced arrest and persecution following the declaration of Emergency.

Rise through the party

Mr. Baby was elected the national president of the SFI in 1979, and in 1987, he took over as the national president of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI). At the age of 32, he was nominated to the Rajya Sabha and his term lasted from 1986 to 1998. In 1989, he was elected to the CPI(M) Central Committee, the highest decision-making body of the party, and in 1992, he entered the CPI(M) Central Secretariat. He was made a Polit Bureau member in 2012.

In the 2006 Assembly polls, Mr. Baby was elected from the Kundara constituency in Kollam and served as Minister for Education and Cultural Affairs in the Left Front-government led by V.S. Achuthanandan. During his ministerial tenure, the introduction of the chapter Mathamillatha Jeevan (Life Without Religion) in the Class VII social science textbook sparked a controversy. This described a child named Jeevan raised without religious affiliation, with the aim of promoting secular values. However, this inclusion ignited significant protests from various religious groups as an attempt to promote atheism. The lesson was revised and Mr. Baby sought to pacify protesters, maintaining that the lesson was not against religion or god.

Another controversy erupted following his remarks on the assault on T.J. Joseph for alleged blasphemy.

Mr. Baby also significantly contributed to Kerala’s cultural scene during his term. He was instrumental in establishing the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, which has since evolved into a highly regarded event on the global art circuit. Furthermore, he facilitated the visit of numerous acclaimed artists and literary figures to Kerala, enriching the State’s cultural landscape.

A true patron of the arts, he enjoys a broad and unique circle of friends spanning Kerala’s artistic and literary fraternity, a distinction few other politicians could claim.

In 2011, Mr. Baby secured a second term as the MLA from Kundara, although the Left Democratic Front (LDF) lost the State election to the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF).

Despite his initial hesitation, the party persuaded Mr. Baby to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Kollam. There, he faced N.K. Premachandran of the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), his former ministerial colleague who had switched allegiance to the UDF. Pinarayi Vijayan’s vitriolic campaign against Mr. Premachandran following his crossover ultimately backfired, contributing to the RSP leader’s victory over Mr. Baby by a margin of 37,649 votes. The defeat deeply affected Mr. Baby, who immediately offered to resign as MLA. While the CPI(M) State committee rejected his resignation, his subsequent absence from the Assembly for several days was noticeable.

Mr. Baby assumes the role of general secretary at a critical juncture for the CPI(M) and the Left wing, and his challenges are significant. He takes on the mantle when the CPI(M) is reeling under substantial setbacks, having lost ground in Tripura and West Bengal. Unlike his predecessor Sitaram Yechury, Mr. Baby lacks a widespread national profile.

Unifying the currently fragmented Left, defining his party’s role within the INDIA bloc, and securing victory in the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections — the newly elected General Secretary is definitely poised for an uphill task.