Alappuzha: Giving a clear indication of the power tussle going on in the CPM here, Alappuzha MLA and CPM district secretariat member P.P.Chitharanjan was first omitted from the invitation list for a party function to be inaugurated by Fisheries and Cultural Affairs Minister Saji Cheriyan at Kommadi, coming under the Legislative Assembly constituency.
After the issue of MLA being sidelined snowballed into a controversy, the Kommadi local committee of the party made him the chief guest of the function to avoid further embarrassment.
The minister is set to inaugurate the function on Monday evening in which veteran party leaders, and the students who excelled in the last year's public exams, hailing from the area, will be felicitated.
The CPM district leadership also intervened in the matter and asked the local committee to settle the issue after many members from the Kommadi local committee and the Alappuzha area committee informed the matter to the party district leadership.
But, according to party insiders, the MLA has expressed his inability to attend the function citing pressing engagements for him in the constituency today. The CPM local committee secretary had contacted the MLA and requested for his presence. In a damage-control exercise, the party local committee has also posted on social media, the invitation cards showing the MLA's name.
Party local committee secretary K.J.Praveen clarified that the MLA's name was not included in the invitation card earlier because he had informed his inability to attend the programme due to prior commitments.
But those who are very close to the MLA have termed the claim of the local committee secretary as incorrect.
As reported earlier former minister G Sudhakaran is being targeted by a faction in the party. A CPM commission had quizzed him over allegations that he was inactive during the recent assembly poll campaign. Minister Saji Cherian and CPM Alappuzha district secretary R Nasser had backed Ambalapuzha MLA H Salim's charges in this regard.
