 All the main decisions in the country were taken with participation and under party's control, in accordance with its "general line". The Communist party was divided into kind of three levels: "soldier" manpower, party bureaucracy and the top layer.
As for the "soldier" manpower, there happened many changes. Trying to lean on the force, opposing the party bureaucracy, N. Khrushev stimulated in some way or other intraparty democracy. Meaning of party meetings increased, as well as responsibility of elected delegates. Number of Conferences increased also, as well as the amount of party members.
In 1962, according to decisions of November CPSU Plenum, restructuring of party organs was fulfilled, on production principle. Separate industrial and agricultural party organisations were set up.
As for political struggle, it went on mainly in the Central Committee Presidium and in the Central Committee itself. The Congresses played basically the role of bellmen of new ideas and concepts, that had been accepted in ruling organs. The outcome of the struggle in Presidium and in Central Committee was a decisive one for the entire political struggle in the country. The 1956-1964 period was a time of some broadening of democracy inside the party. The role of Plenums became considerably more significant.
In 1956 a mighty opposition to Khrushev began to rise. His report "About cult of the individual" became an event, defining not only the new political course of the country, but it stimulated "loyal stalinists" to activate their actions, pointed to Khrushev's dismissal. The opposition group was headed by V. Molotov, G. Malenkov and L. Kaganovitsh. In June of 1957 the struggle turned into an open confrontation. The Central Committee Presidium accepted a decision about Khrushev's dismissal.
However Khrushev was supported by a bigger part of the Army, by the fresher part of the Central Committee and KGB (KGB - Committee for National Security). On a new Plenum, called on 22-29 June, the actions of the opposition side were reckoned as factious. Molotov, Malenkov, Kaganovich and Shepilov, who had adjoined them, were withdrawn from Presidium and from the Central Committee. So for the first time in many years Presidium was an active, decisive political force.
The next step in political struggle was marshal Zhukov's dismissal from the post of Minister for Defence and withdrawal from Presidium, since his popularity was by that time close to Khrushev's. Zhukov was accused that "he had ignored Lenin's party principles in managing the Armed Forces".
At the beginning of 1959 the XXI (extraordinary) Party Congress was held, called for consideration and ratification of the seven-year plan of the National Economy development. The Congress stated, that socialism in the USSR gained full and irrevocable victory. The seven-year plan was considered as an important step towards creation the material and technical base of Communism.
The XXII Party Congress (October 1961) was a logical development of ideas, expressed on the pervious one. On the XXII Congress a new CPSU program was accepted - the program of Communistic society construction.
Nikita Khrushev's political course, style and methods of administration caused growing irritation among party and government apparatus. In 1964 L. Brezhnev, M. Suslov and A. Shelepin prepared and carried out Khrushev's displace ment. On October 12, 1964, at the time when N. Khrushev was in the Crimea enjoying his holiday, an enlarged meeting of the Central Committee Presidium was held in the Kremlin, where Suslov and Shelepin raised a question about Khrushov's dismissal from all his posts. N. Khrushov was summoned to Moscow, to the meeting. He was accused in ignoring principles of collectiveness in administration, in voluntarism, in unacceptable, wild administrative methods etc. All the Presidium members appeared against Khrushev, except A. Mikoyan. On 14 October, 1964 Nikita Khrushev was discharged of duties of the First CPSU secretary, of Presidium member and of the USSR Council of Ministers Chairman "due to declining years and unsatisfactory health". The October (1964) Central Committee Plenum considered "not practical" in future to combine duties of the First CPSU Secretary and Council of Ministers Chairman. Leonid Brezhnev was voted the First Secretary, Alex Cosigin - the Council of Ministers Chairman.
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