Tha. Pandian: A lifetime in service of the oppressed

MADURAI: “Until I die, I will keep Tamils awake and aware with my speech,” thundered Tha. Pandian just 10 days ago at a State conference of the Communist Party of India in Madurai. Pandian passed away on Friday following a brief bout of illness. He was 88. He is set to be buried in his ancestral village of Kezh Vellamalaipatti near Usilampatti, where he wandered around in his early years spreading Communist philosophy. The veteran Communist is survived by two daughters and son, P Jawahar.

Pandian was just 16 when he was first arrested in 1948, a year after Independence, after the Communist Party was banned in the country. He completed his graduation in English at Alagappa College in Karaikudi and joined the faculty in the same department. His wife, Joyce, was also a teacher. He left that job in 1962 to serve the party, and moved to Chennai to nurture its literary wing.

He also served as a trade unionist in the railways and the harbour. He was instrumental in breaking up the CPI for the second time in the late 1970s when he left and floated the United Communist Party of India. In the late 1990s, he merged his party with the CPI. He was elected to the Lok Sabha from the North Chennai constituency in 1989 and 1991. In 2005, Pandian was elected as State Secretary of the CPI, a position he held for 10 years.

Despite his adherence to the Communist ideology, many considered him a communist leader with a leaning toward the AIADMK. Unlike his predecessors, Pandian was a big dreamer and, during his tenure as state secretary, wanted to construct a huge office complex to house the party headquarters, bring out a daily party newspaper, and launch a party TV channel.

Of these, he succeeded in constructing an eight-floor office building for the party and partly succeeded in launching a daily, Janasakthi, which later became a weekly due to poor patronage. He faced much criticism from party cadres who blamed him for pushing the party into debt by taking huge loans to construct the party headquarters.

An effective orator with deep knowledge and understanding of Communist ideology, Pandiyan was also a prolific writer, authoring over 30 books and 1,000 articles. He served as the editor of Janasakthi till his last breath. He addressed his last party meeting on February 18. Brought to the stage in a wheel chair, Pandian made a ten-minute firebrand speech. “I wish to stand and talk, but I would speak even better when I am sitting. None can defeat Communism,” he said to cheering applause.

Leaders condole death
Governor of Tamil Nadu Banwarilal Purohit, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, DMK president MK Stalin and other political leaders condoled his death. In his condolence message, the Governor said, “With a political span covering nearly many decades his contribution to the development of Tamil Nadu will always remain unforgettable.”

Chief Minister Palaniswami said, “Pandian was a hard worker and known to be an affable man. There is no doubt the life and experiences of brother Pandian shall be a lesson to the younger generation.” Stalin expressed shock over the veteran Communist leader’s death. He said, “He bravely faced any challenge and was a friend of the working class,” he said.

The Rajiv connection
Pandian wrote the book ‘Rajiv Gandhiyin Kadaisi Mani Thuligal’ on the last minutes of Rajiv Gandhi before he was assassinated at Sriperumbudur. Proficient in English, Pandian was about to translate his public speech at Sriperumbudur, and was severely injured in the blast.

Later he was inducted as witness number 47 in the case. Pandian, proposed, along with the Congress party, to the then Chief Minister Karunanidhi to rename the Government General Hospital after Rajiv Gandhi since his body was brought there following his assassination.