People's Democracy

UPDATING THE SFI PROGRAMME

Ideological Steeling Of The Organisation

THE momentous All India Special Conference of the SFI, held in Guwahati from February 7 to 10, 2004, unanimously adopted the updated Programme and Constitution of Students’ Federation of India. The conference also decided to bring out a 16-point Demand Charter along with the updated Programme. In the course of the year-long discussions on the ‘Draft Programme and Constitution’, various state committees proposed 297 amendments. In the conference delegates moved 94 amendments, while the steering committee and the CEC moved 28 and 13 amendments respectively. After a thorough and meticulous discussion on a total of 431 amendments, the conference decided to accept 85.

The 10th All India Conference held in Chennai in 2000 had decided to initiate the process of updading the programme and constitution in order to reflect the developments that had taken place since the adoption of the original programme in the founding conference of the SFI in 1970 and to take into account the experiences of the student movement in the intervening period. Accordingly, the CEC prepared and placed a draft in the subsequent All India Conference held in Calicut. The Calicut conference adopted the draft Programme and Constitution with 44 amendments for further inner organisational discussion and took a decision to finalise the programme in an All India Special Conference.

Talking about the necessity of a thorough inner organisational discussion on the draft programme during the formative years of the Russian Social Democratic Party Lenin had commented, “…it is to be hoped that in the discussion of the draft programme all views and all shades of views will be afforded expression, that the discussion will be comprehensive. The polemic indicates that the Russian Social-Democrats are showing a revived interest in extensive questions pertaining to the aims of our movement and to its immediate tasks and tactics; precisely such a revival is essential to a discussion of the draft programme.” The discussion that took place within the SFI during the process of finalisation of the programme reflected all these aspects and enriched our organisation.

The Calicut Conference was followed by an intense and rigorous discussion throughout the rank and file of the organisation — an ideological exercise wherein the overall political and ideological maturity of the organisation came to the fore. Thorough democratic discussions at all levels of the organisation culminated in the Special Conference, which discussed all the amendments and proposals, sent by various committees. 

The Updated Programme is divided into three parts — ‘Our Heritage’, ‘Perspective’ and ‘Aims and Objectives’. The newly added section on ‘Heritage’ discusses the development of the organised student movement in our country. Beginning it formation of the AISF in 1936 with its roots in anti-colonial struggle, this section covers the major ideological debates leading to the formation of the SFI and the course of its struggles over the years. It discusses how the SFI had to be formed because of the tendencies of a section of the AISF leadership that tried to make the student movement tail the government policies and argued that `national reconstruction’ through cooperation with the government was the only task of students in the changed situation. On the other hand, the emergence of ultra left sectarian ideology within the student community tried to disrupt the organised student movement with its misleading theory of `student power’, which sought to entrust the student community with the leadership of social revolution. Marx’s quotation that only those who have got nothing to lose can make revolution was distorted to conclude that students, having nothing to lose given their age, enthusiasm and lack of motivation for economic gain can take up this task. This theory also proclaimed that prostitutes, beggars and students who do not form the productive forces, are the revolutionary vanguard, instead of the working class. It is to be noted that some right wing student organisations and some NGOs are still propagating this slogan in order to divert the student community from the correct path of social transformation. The section on ‘Heritage’ records how the SFI successfully struggled against such trends and upheld the slogan of “Study & Struggle” to emerge as the largest student organisation in the country. The updated SFI Programme emphatically reiterates its correct concept of social transformation and rejects the trash spread by both the right reformist and ultra left sectarian deviations.

The Programme reiterates its understanding that unless a thorough socio-economic transformation is carried out through the abolition of feudal land relations and monopoly capital, the existing inequalities in society cannot be done away with. It identifies such a democratic transformation, which would ultimately lead to socialism, as an essential prerequisite for the development of a democratic, scientific and progressive education system in our country. It calls upon the student community to play its role, in complete unity with the other sections of the people, to play its role in bringing about such a transition.

The updated Programme notes the challenges posed before this task by the process of imperialist globalisation, which has led to increased immiserisation for the vast majority of the people. In the sphere of education, the pursuit of neo-liberal economic policies has led to a large-scale withdrawal of the state from education and the mushrooming of private institutions. Private managements are exploiting the educational aspirations of the people by charging exorbitant fees. It is in this context that the SFI Programme demands that the state fulfill its primary role of providing democratic and scientific education to all, and also demands social control over private educational institutes especially regarding admissions, fees and content. The updated Programme reflects the experience of the student movement that these institutions have been run with the sole motive of profiteering and have the most regressive admissions and recruitment policies. Till this is achieved, the Programme argues for a support mechanism to be provided to all the marginalised sections of society.

Since the adoption of the last programme, the threat of communalism has grown to be a major one for our country. The majority communal forces represented by the Sangh Parivar are using state power to carry out their campaign of hatred against the minorities and are unleashing a reign of terror. These policies are consequently also breeding minority communalism. Poverty and overall deprivation of the people due to faulty ruling class economic policies are providing a fertile ground for the growth of these forces that threaten the unity and integrity of our country. The Programme reiterates its commitment to secularism and stands for the protection of minorities and their rights. The RSS and its various outfits are demanding the repeal of Articles 29 and 30 provided to the minorities under the Constitution of India. SFI is opposed to this demand and reiterates that protection of the rights of minorities is essential in a democratic society. However, there are some instances where this right is being misused by vested interests who are running educational institutes on a commercial basis purely with a motive of earning profits. SFI is strongly opposed to such misuse of a constitutionally guaranteed right.

The Programme reiterates its understanding that unless a thorough socio-economic transformation is carried out through the abolition of feudal land relations and monopoly capital, the existing inequalities in society cannot be done away with. Till this is achieved, the Programme argues for a support mechanism to be provided to all the marginalised sections of society. The Programme demands the continuation and proper implementation of reservations provided to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. It also demands reservations for the OBCs with an economic criterion decided by mutual agreement. It also demands reservations for economically backward communities and other marginalised sections of society.

The perennial problem of caste discrimination and gender inequalities point to the continuing prevalence of the feudal system. The capitalist structure super-imposed on the feudal system without wiping out these anomalies has aggravated them in many new and varied forms. These obnoxious practices are having an adverse impact on the education system. The Programme, therefore, rightly addresses these concerns and identifies that the struggle against these practices should be carried out not in isolation but together with all forces fighting against the discriminative socio-economic system. Though the earlier Programme identified these problems and forecasted their threat to the unity of toiling sections, an elaborate analysis is done in the updated Programme.

The Programme lays emphasis on further democratisation of the society. It is only with the completion of the democratic stage of social transformation that the ultimate objective of a socialist society that ensures education and employment for all can be achieved. The compromise struck between the capitalist path of development with landlordism on the one hand and the dominance of monopoly and foreign capital on the other, impede the democratic transformation of society. This is hampering the vigorous industrialisation of our country. The existence of feudal social relations and the absence of comprehensive land reforms have left the agricultural sector in a moribund position and resulted in the marginalisation of peasants and agricultural workers. This socio-economic reality reflected in the education policies pursued by the successive governments. A huge gap has emerged between the precept in the education system and the practical reality, which has failed to meet the aspirations of the young of this country. In order to establish a democratic, scientific and progressive education system the task of the democratisation of the society `facilitated by the implementation of comprehensive land reforms, elimination of the stranglehold of international finance capital and indigenous monopoly capitalism must be realised.

The correct understanding of the existing socio-economic conditions of our society combined with the adherence to the correct ideology has helped our organisation in updating the Programme and Constitution. The organisation is also aware that updating the Programme does not complete its task. It is the first step towards achieving victory. The implementation of our programmatic understanding in day-to-day work, building the organisation on these lines and tempering the cadre with proper ideological training is the only way to ensure the realisation of these aims. For this the Special Conference decided to further continue its task of steeling the organisation through study and struggle.