Kollam: The man accused of the murder of a CPM activist in Chithara near Kollam was never associated with the opposition Congress, his brother said, dismissing the ruling party's attempt to portray itself as the victim of revenge politics.
After the murder of the 70-year-old CPM member was reported, party state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said that it was the second murder by Congress workers in Kollam district within a month. He termed the accused, Shajahan, a “Congress criminal”.
Shajahan's brother Sulaiman, however, said that their family's loyalty was with the CPM in fact. “We have never campaigned for the CPM. But we always voted for the CPM. I do not know who made Shajahan a Congress workers after the murder,” Sulaiman told Manorama News. He said that his brother occasionally showed signs of mental disturbance.
Meanwhile, Shajahan told police interrogators that he killed A M Basheer to settle personal scores, a claim backed by the remand report. Shajahan said that he wanted to get even with Basheer who had earlier beaten him up. His relatives said that the victim and the accused had squabbled over the sale of tapioca.
The police told the court that the Saturday's murder had personal motives and they were investigating any political angles of the crime. The first information report said that Shajahan was a Congress sympathiser.
The police have registered three cases related to the incident. Police had said Basheer had questioned Shajahan for calling him names. That escalated into verbal abuse between the two. Basheer pelted stones at Shajahan, but was stabbed a while later after walking away from the spat. Basheer was stabbed nine times and succumbed to his injuries at the Taluk Hospital.
Basheer, a bachelor, was a member of the CPM local branch committee. The CPM has declared a hartal in Chithara Panchayat on Sunday in protest.
