PRAKASH KARAT* Notes on the Revolutionary Life and Activities of Georgi Dimitrov JUNE 18, 1982, marks the hundredth birth anniversary of Georgi Dimitrov, Bulgarian communist leader and patriot, proletarian internationalist and indomitable fighter against fascism. The birth centenary of a revolutionary like Dimitrov's will be celebrated all over the world by communist and progressive circles. It will be an occasion to once again evaluate his valuable contribution to the international communist movement and to sum up the theory and practice of one of the foremost leaders thrown up by the working class movement. To encompass the rich and varied contribution of Dimitrov in a short article would be impractical and doing injustice to the range and depth of his multifaceted activities. Therefore, the following piece has been written in the form of notes, which, though fragmentary, will seek to highlight some of the aspects of Dimitrov's creative role in the international working class movement and the rich legacy inherited by the revolutionary forces since the second quarter of the twentieth century. Brilliant Exposure of Fascism Dimitrov will be primarily associated with that chapter of history in the 1930's and 1940's which witnessed the life and death struggle waged against fascism in Europe — a struggle between the forces of barbarism spawned by the decadent capitalist system and the forces of civilisation, social progress and peace. Dimitrov assumes a heroic form — the stuff of legends — in this deadly struggle against German fascism. His superb defence at the Reichstag fire trial at Leipzig, projected him as a symbol of the popular struggle developing against fascism in Europe. Significant as this trial was in exemplifying his noble and staunch proletarian courage and marking the first moral victory over nazism, Dimitrov's role in the struggle against fascism has a much more profound character. During his brilliant exposure of fascism conducted personally in the spotlight of world opinion, and ^Secretary, Delhi State Committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)