Leftists and academics have criticised President Jiang Zemin for encouraging a cult of personality and breaching the Chinese Communist Party constitution in a campaign to promote his controversial speech on accepting private entrepreneurs into the party.
Mr Jiang, in a speech to mark the party's 80th anniversary last month, formally ended the ban on membership for private entrepreneurs, saying they were helping to build 'socialism with Chinese characteristics'.
The decision sparked renewed criticism of Mr Jiang by ultra-leftists for his 'undemocratic' way of pushing such key changes 'without going through the party channel'. It also has been suggested that the move was part of a bid to foster a personality cult.
A sharply worded letter by the party's remnant Maoists, led by Deng Liqun, a former head of propaganda, has been circulated in Beijing and on the Internet.
The letter, which brands Mr Jiang's decision to allow capitalists into the party as an 'extremely serious political mistake', challenged the President's speech by arguing his decision 'violated party constitution'.
'The 16th clause of the party constitution stipulated that key national matters should be collectively decided by the Party Congress, but it is a question whether Jiang's July 1 speech, a personal speech endorsing the important decision to embrace private entrepreneurs, was voted by the Central Committee or was approved by the Party Congress,' the letter said.