Factionalism within the Chinese Communist Party

Xi’s New Zhijiang Army, a.k.a. Xi Jinping Faction, has been replacing the Chinese Youth League, which earlier served as "reserve" for elite posts in the CCP as well as in other areas such as the judiciary.

The Chinese Youth League is a youth organisation with people aged between 14 and  28, run by the CCP. The league was founded in 1920 under the original name of the Socialist Youth League of China, which was later renamed the Chinese Youth League.

Tuanpai

The league was also informally referred to as "Tuanpai" to describe certain members of the league who held leadership roles in CCP at different times. The workings of the league were blocked during the Cultural Revolution.

The league produced leaders like Hu Yaobang, ’s immediate predecessor, Hu Jintao, former Premier Li Keqiang, former Vice-President Hu Chunhua, etc.

In a bid to diminish the role of the CYL and strengthen its hold over power, Xi Jinping promoted and appointed his close associates in the central governance system. Xi always pushed for loyalty, central control, political homogeneity, and no individual fiefdom in the CYL.

The Reform

After coming to power in 2012, Xi took steps to curb the influence of CYL. In 2016, Ling Jihua, a close aide of Hu Jintao, was jailed for corruption charges. Further, Xi overhauled the CYL by restricting membership to elites only. Besides, the league has been losing members and is running short of funds as well, making it defunct from within.

Xi always favoured grass-roots work; thus, he considers that league lacking in grass-roots work experience and is a "clique." As per some experts, the league has lost its prominence at the central level only, but it is still relevant at the local level as there is no alternative.

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