Why was Chen Boda criticized and removed from public view in 1970?

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Lin Biao, Zhou Enlai, and other Chinese officials stand in uniform, holding up Little Red Books during a 1967 Red Guard rally in China. — Lin Biao At a 1967 Red Guard rally, Lin Biao (left) and Zhou Enlai publicly display copies of *The Little Red Book*.

In the summer of 1970, tensions within the top ranks of the Chinese Communist Party intensified during a meeting of the Central Committee. During this plenum, Chen Boda, Lin Biao, and their supporters made a series of remarks that angered Mao Zedong.12

Mao viewed these actions as a threat and subsequently initiated a campaign to criticize Chen Boda, who had chosen to support Lin’s cause against Mao’s growing wariness of his designated successor. This criticism served as a strategic warning to Lin Biao. Consequently, Chen Boda was removed from public view in August 1970 and was later purged from the Politburo.213