Revolutionary Communist Party of India

The RCPI works toward a socialist revolution, rather than a people's democratic revolution, a national democratic revolution or a new democratic revolution. The party strives to build socialism under the leadership of the proletariat with active cooperation of other exploited strata of the humanity, including peasants, working intellectuals and non-manual working sections of people. ==Communist League==

S.N. Tagore founded the Communist League on 1 August 1934. He toured the continent on behalf of the League Against Imperialism. Albeit CPI would later moderate its positions after the Seventh Congress of the Communist International, Tagore broke with CPI and founded his own communist group (the Communist League). In May 1934 Tagore set up an 'initiative committee' for the founding of the new party. Other founders of the Communist League included Sudhir Dasgupta, Prabhat Sen, Ranjit Majumdar and Arun Banerjee. Tagore denounced the Popular Front line of CPI, rejecting the Congress Socialist Party. In Tagore's view the CSP represented an alliance between socialists and reactionary elements of the bourgeoise. ==Communist League and the peasantry==

After the formation of the Communist League Tagore began touring the Bengal country-side, organizing peasants to struggle for abolishing the zamindari system. In early 1938 Tagore built a peasants wing, the Bangiyo Pradeshik Kisan Sabha, separate from the CPI-led Krishak Samiti. Tagore's BPKS demanded abolition of the zamindari system without giving any compensation to landlords, free distribution of land among the cultivators and agricultural labourers, minimization of revenue demands and cancellation of debts to moneylenders. ==Communist League in Murshidabad==

Tarapada Gupta set up the Communist League branch in Murshidabad in 1936, raising the red flag for the first time in recorded history in the district. The Communist League preceded both the CPI and the RSP in Murshidabad. ==Tagore in Assam==

RCPI was the first left organization to established itself in Assam. RCPI built a student movement in Assam. In November 1938 Tagore visited Assam and met with a group of students and youth. His visit was organized by the Congressman Debranath Sarma. The students would later contest, and eventually win, the Cotton College Students Union through the Assam Provincial Students Federation. On 2 May 1940 the Krishak Banuva Panchayat was formed in Gauhati as the open front group of the party in Assam. The basic unit of KBP was the Gaon Krishak Panchayat ('Village Peasants Council'). In 1949 he became a RCPI member. The efforts had meagre results. Notably RCPI made no intents to build the party in the hill areas of Assam. ==RCPI and the World War==

The party was organized along Leninist lines with party cells at the bottom of the party hierarchy and the Central Committee as its leadership. In March 1943 the name RCPI was adopted, in order to differentiate itself from the CPI. The party was often referred to as the 'Tagorites' or as the 'Ganavani group' (after the name of its publication). RCPI differed with CPI on tactical questions during the Second World War. The RCPI fully supported the Quit India movement. KBP was able to make some inroads amongst these sectors. Some Tribal League leaders in Assam, such as Aniram Basumatari and Daben Khaklari, became RCPI members in the mid-1940s. Their presence in the party helped it to make inroads amongst the tribals in Assam. ==Independence and Partition==

As the departure of British colonial rule came closer, RCPI denounced the negotiated independence as a joint conspiracy between British imperialism and the Indian bourgeoisie. Rejecting the official process for independence, RCPI began organizing panchayats (i.e. soviets) of workers and peasants in order to convene a Workers and Peasants Constituent Assembly. In December 1947 Tagore was elected president of the All India Bank Employees Association, at its conference held in Lucknow. ==Tagore–Dasgupta split==

Tagore was jailed in November 1947. Dasgupta's view that India was ripe for armed revolution coincided with the position of the new CPI leader B.T. Ranadive. After the Birbhum conference Tagore, at a public meeting in Calcutta, denounced insurrectional line of Dasgupta. Tagore's speech pushed the Dasgupta group to issue disciplinary action against him, accepting his resignation from the Central Committee. Half a year later Tagore gathered his followers for a separate Party Conference, as its 5th Party Congress, in Burdwan. Thus there were two parallel RCPIs, one led by Dasgupta and one led by Tagore. Dasgupta represented the majority group in the split. It was sometimes known as 'RCPI (Rebel Group)' or as 'RCPI (Dasgupta)'. The Tagore-led party was known as 'RCPI (Tagore)'. ==26 February 1949 attacks==

On 26 February 1949 the Dasgupta-led RCPI initiated its armed revolt. At the Jessop plant equipment was stolen. At Basirhat they attacked a police station, killing two guards and stealing 26 rifles. 39 RCPI cadres were arrested, including Dasgupta himself. They were held without trial for 4–5 years, and then sentenced to jail. Dasgupta himself was sentenced to imprisonment for life. After the 1949 revolt, the party cast away its line of insurrectional politics. Whilst RCPI acted from underground, no formal ban was placed on the party. ==Assam insurgency==

The Assam branch of RCPI sided with Dasgupta in the 1948 split. In the wake of the Dum Dum-Basirhat attacks, the party decided to launch an armed movement for the independence of Assam from India. Khagen Barbarua led the movement in the non-tribal areas in Upper Assam. According to the government of Assam, RCPI committed 12 assassinations in the state in 1950. The government responded by cracking down on RCPI in Assam. RCPI-CPI relations reached its lowest point in 1952. ==Work amongst refugees==

RCPI had a mass organization, the Bastuhara Kalyan Parishad, which organized relief activities in camps of refugees from East Pakistan. The party also had a separate refugee women's organization, Bangiya Dal Seba Sangathan. Prabhat Mukherjee and Amalendu Neogi were key RCPI leaders at Chandmari camp. RCPI (Rebel) in UCRC and ULF. In October 1950 RCPI forcefully took control of 175 bighas near Gayeshpur Colony and redistributed the land amongst 350 refugee families. ==First General Election==

The party boycotted the 1951–1952 elections. In October 1952, the Assam government withdrew the ban on the RCPI. ==Union activism==

RCPI was active within the United Trade Union Congress, but opposed RSP domination of UTUC. ==RCPI in Bihar==

RCPI never gained any prominence in Bihar. The influence of the party solely included a few trade unions in Chhotanagpur. One union influenced by RCPI was the Hindustan Khan Mazdoor Sangh, a coal miners' union. ==RCPI in Bombay==

Krishna Desai, a textile worker from Bombay, joined RCPI in 1947. He was elected to the Bombay Municipal Corporation at numerous times as a RCPI candidate. Another labour organizer of RCPI in Bombay was K.L. Bajaj, who became a RCPI member after a visit to Calcutta in the early 1950s. RCPI took part in the Samyukta Maharashtra struggle of the 1950s. ==1957 elections==

The party fielded 5 candidates in the 1957 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election. Khagen Barbarua of RCPI was elected to the Assam Legislative Assembly in the 1957 Assam Legislative Assembly election from the Amguri constituency. ==1960 Party Congress==

The party held an All India Party Conference in Howrah in 1960. Moreover, Howrah conference elected Sudhindranath Kumar as new general secretary of the party. As per an agreement between RWP and RCPI, the Trotskyists were given five seats in the RCPI Central Committee. ==1962 elections==

Ahead of the 1962 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election RCPI joined the CPI-led United Left Front. Two RCPI candidates were elected; Anadi Das from Howrah West and Kanai Pal (ex-RWP) from Santipur. In Assam RCPI stayed out of the United Opposition Front set up by the Praja Socialist Party and independents. Khagen Barbarua retained the Amguri seat in the 1962 Assam Legislative Assembly election. RCPI had fielded 16 candidates in the election. ==1962 Indo-China war==

When Dasgupta returned after his release from jail, the relations with the former RWP cadres deteriorated. ==1967 elections==

Kumar served as convenor of the United Front formed ahead of the 1967 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election. Anadi Das lost his assembly seat in the election. During the protests against the dismissal of the first United Front cabinet in 1967, Kumar was arrested under the Preventive Detention Act. RCPI won 3 seats in the first Howrah Municipal Corporation polls, held in 1967. Md. Shamsul Huda of RCPI won the Dhing seat in the 1967 Assam Legislative Assembly election. ==In the Second United Front government==