Hardial Bains
Encyclopedia
Hardial Bains was the founder of the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist)
and its leader until his death. He was a well-known if controversial figure in world communism, active in Britain, Ireland and India as well as Canada.
into a Communist
family in the Punjab, Bains became a member of the youth wing of the Communist Party of India
(CPI). He was dismayed by what he saw as the revisionism of Nikita Khrushchev
following the death of Joseph Stalin
, and he broke with the CPI when it supported Khrushchev's criticisms of Stalin.
In 1963, he founded the Internationalists, an anti-revisionist
organization that supported Mao Zedong
's Communist Party of China
in the Sino-Soviet split
. This organisation (in Canada) ultimately became the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) (CPC-ML), of which Bains was the founding leader.
In 1967, Bains held a conference in London to determine the future of the anti-revisionist movement, the "Necessity for Change" conference. The Irish Communist Organisation disagreed with the other delegates and walked out of the meeting. Bains was a leader of the anti-revisionist movement internationally, and assisted in establishing Marxist-Leninist
parties around the world, such as the Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist-Leninist)
, the Communist Party of Trinidad and Tobago
, the Communist Party of Ireland (Marxist-Leninist)
, and the Communist Ghadar Party of India
. Bains was also responsible for the founding of the Hindustani Ghadar Party (Organisation of Indian Marxist-Leninists Abroad). He held a leading influence in the Marxist-Leninist Party, USA
in the 1970s. (This party was dissolved in 1993.) Modern Communism has written articles on his Marxist-Leninist legacy.
Many of these parties originally held a "Maoist
" position in the 1960s and 1970s, and Bains was often identified as a Maoist. However, following Mao Zedong
's death in 1976, they would later reject Mao Zedong Thought, particularly through the experience of the Sino-Albanian split
. Following the leadership of Enver Hoxha
and the Albanian Party of Labour
, Bains' anti-revisionism
deepened in the sense of opposition both to the European revisionism (Khrushchev, Josip Broz Tito
and Eurocommunism
) and to the Chinese revisionism.
A memorial was erected in the honour of Bains and other CPC-ML "fallen comrades" in Ottawa
's Beechwood Cemetery
. Poet George Elliot Clarke published a poem titled "Homage to Hardial Bains" in 2000 in the Oyster Boy Review. Bains was attacked posthumously by Ben Seattle in an article on Leninism.org entitled In memory of a charlatan.
Bains wrote several books, including Necessity for Change!, Modern Communism, Visiting Cuba, If You Love Your Class and Thinking About the Sixties, as well as many more articles, pamphlets and speeches.
Sandra L. Smith, his widow, also served as leader of the CPC-ML.
Communist Party of Canada (Marxist–Leninist)
The Communist Party of Canada is a Canadian federal Marxist–Leninist political party.The party is registered with Elections Canada as the Marxist–Leninist Party of Canada...
and its leader until his death. He was a well-known if controversial figure in world communism, active in Britain, Ireland and India as well as Canada.
Life
Born in IndiaIndia
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...
into a Communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
family in the Punjab, Bains became a member of the youth wing of the Communist Party of India
Communist Party of India
The Communist Party of India is a national political party in India. In the Indian communist movement, there are different views on exactly when the Indian communist party was founded. The date maintained as the foundation day by CPI is 26 December 1925...
(CPI). He was dismayed by what he saw as the revisionism of Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
following the death of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
, and he broke with the CPI when it supported Khrushchev's criticisms of Stalin.
In 1963, he founded the Internationalists, an anti-revisionist
Anti-Revisionist
In the Marxist–Leninist movement, anti-revisionism refers to a doctrine which upholds the line of theory and practice associated with Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin, and usually either Mao Zedong or Enver Hoxha as well...
organization that supported Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
's Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
in the Sino-Soviet split
Sino-Soviet split
In political science, the term Sino–Soviet split denotes the worsening of political and ideologic relations between the People's Republic of China and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics during the Cold War...
. This organisation (in Canada) ultimately became the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) (CPC-ML), of which Bains was the founding leader.
In 1967, Bains held a conference in London to determine the future of the anti-revisionist movement, the "Necessity for Change" conference. The Irish Communist Organisation disagreed with the other delegates and walked out of the meeting. Bains was a leader of the anti-revisionist movement internationally, and assisted in establishing Marxist-Leninist
Marxism-Leninism
Marxism–Leninism is a communist ideology, officially based upon the theories of Marxism and Vladimir Lenin, that promotes the development and creation of a international communist society through the leadership of a vanguard party over a revolutionary socialist state that represents a dictatorship...
parties around the world, such as the Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist-Leninist)
Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist-Leninist)
The Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain is a British communist political party. It was originally named the Communist Party of England , until it was reorganised after rejecting Maoism. The party's thinking is based on the politics of Hardial Bains, who died in 1997...
, the Communist Party of Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
, the Communist Party of Ireland (Marxist-Leninist)
Communist Party of Ireland (Marxist-Leninist)
The Communist Party of Ireland was an anti-revisionist political party based in Ireland, it had strong links with Party of Labour of Albania, Communist Party of Canada and Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain .CPI originated from the "Internationalists in Ireland", a group started on 9...
, and the Communist Ghadar Party of India
Communist Ghadar Party of India
The Communist Ghadar Party of India was founded on December 25, 1980, as a continuation of the Hindustani Ghadar Party - Organisation of Indian Marxist-Leninists Abroad founded in Canada in 1970. The group had established a presence in Punjab during the 1970s. Initially the group identified itself...
. Bains was also responsible for the founding of the Hindustani Ghadar Party (Organisation of Indian Marxist-Leninists Abroad). He held a leading influence in the Marxist-Leninist Party, USA
Marxist-Leninist Party, USA
The Marxist–Leninist Party was the final incarnation of a series of communist anti-revisionist groups that began in the late 1960s and continued into the 1980s.- History :...
in the 1970s. (This party was dissolved in 1993.) Modern Communism has written articles on his Marxist-Leninist legacy.
Many of these parties originally held a "Maoist
Maoism
Maoism, also known as the Mao Zedong Thought , is claimed by Maoists as an anti-Revisionist form of Marxist communist theory, derived from the teachings of the Chinese political leader Mao Zedong . Developed during the 1950s and 1960s, it was widely applied as the political and military guiding...
" position in the 1960s and 1970s, and Bains was often identified as a Maoist. However, following Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
's death in 1976, they would later reject Mao Zedong Thought, particularly through the experience of the Sino-Albanian split
Sino-Albanian split
The Sino-Albanian split in 1978 saw the parting of the People's Republic of China and People's Socialist Republic of Albania, which was the only Eastern European nation to side with the PRC in the Sino–Soviet split of the early 1960s.-History:...
. Following the leadership of Enver Hoxha
Enver Hoxha
Enver Halil Hoxha was a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary andthe leader of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985, as the First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania...
and the Albanian Party of Labour
Albanian Party of Labour
The Party of Labour of Albania was the sole legal political party in Albania during communist rule...
, Bains' anti-revisionism
Anti-Revisionist
In the Marxist–Leninist movement, anti-revisionism refers to a doctrine which upholds the line of theory and practice associated with Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin, and usually either Mao Zedong or Enver Hoxha as well...
deepened in the sense of opposition both to the European revisionism (Khrushchev, Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
and Eurocommunism
Eurocommunism
Eurocommunism was a trend in the 1970s and 1980s within various Western European communist parties to develop a theory and practice of social transformation that was more relevant in a Western European democracy and less aligned to the influence or control of the Communist Party of the Soviet...
) and to the Chinese revisionism.
A memorial was erected in the honour of Bains and other CPC-ML "fallen comrades" in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
's Beechwood Cemetery
Beechwood Cemetery
Beechwood Cemetery is the National Cemetery of Canada. Because it is located in Ottawa, Ontario, the nation's capital, it is the burial site for a number of statesmen as well as a large number of mayors of the city. A woodland cemetery founded in 1873, it is 160 acres and is the largest cemetery...
. Poet George Elliot Clarke published a poem titled "Homage to Hardial Bains" in 2000 in the Oyster Boy Review. Bains was attacked posthumously by Ben Seattle in an article on Leninism.org entitled In memory of a charlatan.
Bains wrote several books, including Necessity for Change!, Modern Communism, Visiting Cuba, If You Love Your Class and Thinking About the Sixties, as well as many more articles, pamphlets and speeches.
Sandra L. Smith, his widow, also served as leader of the CPC-ML.
Publications
- Hardial Bains. The Question is Really One of Word and Deed (pamphlet), Progressive Cultural Association, 1997. ISBN 978-0953008308.
- Hardial Bains. The Call of the Martyrs: On the Crisis in India and the Present Situation in the Punjab. National Publications Centre, 1985. ISBN 978-0888031334.
- Hardial Bains. Modern Communism (pamphlet), Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist), reprinted 1996. ISBN 0920410030, ISBN 9780920410035.
- Hardial Bains. Communism 1989-1991, Ideological Studies Centre, 1991.
- Hardial Bains. Necessity for Change! The Dialectic Lives! (pamphlet), The Internationalists, 1967. Reprinted by Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist), 1998.