Visakhapatnam: The two major Left parties have Telugus at the helm after over 35 years. While Mr Sitaram Yechury was elected CPM general secretary on Sunday, Mr Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy, 73, heads the CPI.
Mr Sudhakar Reddy is from Mahbubnagar in Telangana; Mr Yechury, 63, is a Telugu born in Chennai.
Incidentally, both were elected during the 21st congress of their respective parties. Both leaders are focusing on Left unity to fight the BJP and the Congress.
This is the second time that Telugus head the two parties. Between 1964 and 1976, Chandra Rajeswara Rao of Krishna district headed the CPI and Putchalapalli Sundaraiah of Nellore district was general secretary of the CPM.
Rajeswara Rao was general secretary right from the spilt of the CPI in 1964 and continued till 1992, for about 28 years, Sundaraiah was the CPM first general secretary soon after the party was formed following its split from the CPI in 1964 and continued up to 1968 when he was succeeded by E.M.S. Namboodi-ripad.
