Reflections and Resolutions: The Fifteenth Party Congress of 1995

The Fifteenth Party Congress was held in Chandigarh from April 3 to 8, 1995, during a time when the Congress government's globalization and liberalization policies were negatively impacting the Indian populace. Communal tensions were also on the rise across the country. E.M.S. Namboodiripad inaugurated the Party Congress, and Harkishan Singh Surjeet presented the political resolution.
The resolution assessed the collapse of socialist systems in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, attributing it to serious deviations in the application of Marxism-Leninism. While capitalism gained confidence from these setbacks, the resolution argued that it remained incapable of addressing humanity's fundamental problems. It emphasized that the reverses faced by socialism were temporary.
In the second part of the resolution, which focused on the national situation, it was noted that the Congress had suffered setbacks in elections. The resolution also highlighted the negative impact of neoliberal policies on the poor and middle class.
Prakash Karat presented the political-organizational report, which included detailed discussions about the committee formed to revise the party program. The Congress approved amendments to Articles 4, 6, 17, 18, and 19 of the Party Constitution. A 74-member Central Committee was elected, with Harkishan Singh Surjeet re-elected as General Secretary. The Polit Bureau was composed of 16 members.