From The Hindu Archives, February 20, 1976: Campaign against foes of cultural revolution

Peking, Feb. 19: Wall posters appearing in Shanghai have denounced an unidentified “Khrushchev number two” who, it was alleged, opposed Chairman Mao Tse-tung’s principle that the communist party should exercise control over the armed forces.

Visitors from Shanghai in the last few days have reported a campaign in China’s leading industrial centre against capitalist “roaders”. The signal for the start of the campaign was the publication of the article on February 6 in the People’s Daily, the party’s official organ, which had denounced leaders taking the “capitalist road.”

The article, observers said, has assumed the importance of a political directive. It has already been published in pamphlet form and distributed.

‘Eliminate them’

In a long front page article on Wednesday, the People’s Daily, indicated that “capitalist roader” party leaders should be removed from power just like former President Liu Shao-chi and Lin Piao. It mentioned Kao Kang, a leader accused of conspiring against the party in 1954, the “anti-party” clique headed by Peng Teh-huai at the time of the “great leap forward” in 1958, another “anti-party clique” led by Liu Shan-chi during the cultural revolution, and finally Lin Piao who attempted a “counter-revolutionary coup d’etat.