Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Red Flag (CPI (ML) Red Flag) was a political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. CPI (ML) Red Flag was formed in 1988 as a break-away from the Central Reorganization Committee, CPI(ML). The party's main base of support was in Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

, where it emerged as the major ML faction. It also expanded to other states including Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...

, Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....

, Maharashtra

Maharashtra

Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...

, Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh is a state in Central India, formed when the 16 Chhattisgarhi-speaking South-Eastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained separate statehood on 1 November 2000....

,West Bengal and Orissa

Orissa

Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...

. The party head office was located in Delhi

Delhi

Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...

.

The first All India Secretary of the party was Arup Majumdar, followed by K.N. Ramachandran.

In 2003 a large section of the party in Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

, including the majority in the Kerala State Committee, broke away, and are running a parallel CPI (ML) Red Flag. The split was led by the Kerala state secretary of the party, P.C. Unnichekkan

P.C. Unnichekkan

P.C. Unnichekkan is a communist politician from Kerala, India. He is the Kerala State Secretary of the Communist Party of India Red Flag.-References:...

, and M.S. Jayakumar. This party continues to use the name CPI(ML) Red Flag.

The main mass organization of the party was the Trade Union Centre of India

Trade Union Centre of India

Trade Union Centre of India is a national central trade union organization in India. It is linked to the Communist Party of India . Initially it was founded as the trade union wing of Communist Party of India Red Flag, but in 2005 CPI Red Flag merged with CPI.The 5th All India Conference of TUCI...

 (TUCI). Regional mass organizations of the party included Yuvajanavedi

Yuvajanavedi

Yuvajanavedi , is a youth organization linked to the Communist Party of India in Kerala. It used to be linked to Communist Party of India Red Flag prior to the merger between CPI and CPI Red Flag.kerala state secretary.p.k.priyeshkumarand president p.n.provind...

, Kerala Vidyarthi Sanghatana (Kerala Students Organization, a student's wing) and Janakeeya Kala Sahitya Vedi (a cultural front) in Kerala, and Adivasi Democratic Front in Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....

.

CPI (ML) Red Flag published Red Star (English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

), Iykya Horatta (Kannada) and Saghavu (Malayalam).

Ahead of the Lok Sabha

Lok Sabha

The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...

 elections in 2004 CPI(ML) Red Flag and CPI (ML)

Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (Kanu Sanyal)

Communist Party of India is a communist party in India. The party is one of many working under the name of CPI. The party general secretary was Kanu Sanyal...

 took the initiative to form a united front of revolutionary communists. In that front they were able to gather, more than CPI (ML) and CPI (ML) Red Flag, Centre of Communist Revolutionaries (West Bengal

West Bengal

West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...

), Lal Nishan Party (Leninvadi)

Lal Nishan Party (Leninvadi)

Lal Nishan Party is a communist political party in the Indian state of Maharashtra. LNP was formed a splintergroup of Lal Nishan Party in 1988. LNP was critical to that LNP had gotten closer to the Indian National Congress and the Perestroika.LNP is mainly concentrated to trade union activism...

, Marxist Communist Party of India

Marxist Communist Party of India

Marxist Communist Party of India, MCPI was a political party in India. It emerged as a splinter-group of Communist Party of India . The party general secretary was Jagjit Singh Lyallpuri ....

, Marxist-Leninist Committee

Marxist-Leninist Committee

The Marxist-Leninist Committee is a small political party in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, led by K. Venkateswar Rao. The activities of the group are limited to a few districts in the eastern part of the state, for example Guntur...

, New Socialist Movement, Gujarat, Provisional Central Committee, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)

Provisional Central Committee, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)

The Provisional Central Committee, Communist Party of India is a communist political party in India. The general secretary of the party is Santosh Rana. The party is often referred to as CPI [Santosh Rana Group] or likewise....

 and Bhagat Singh Vichar Manch.

In Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

 a Left Front was formed ahead of the elections together with BTR-EMS-AKG Janakeeya Samskarika Vedi of V.B. Cheriyan.

CPI (ML) Red Flag merged with Kanu Sanyal

Kanu Sanyal

Kanu Sanyal, , was an Indian communist politician. In 1967, he was one of the main leader of the Naxalbari uprising...

's Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)

Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (Kanu Sanyal)

Communist Party of India is a communist party in India. The party is one of many working under the name of CPI. The party general secretary was Kanu Sanyal...

 at a unity conference in Vijayawada

Vijayawada

Vijayawada is the third largest city in Andhra Pradesh, India, located on the banks of the Krishna River and bounded by the Indrakiladri Hills on the West and the Budameru River on the North. The city is located in the Krishna District, about from the state capital Hyderabad.Vijayawada literally...

January 2005