Payyanur: Congress will approach the Kerala High Court if the police do not book CPM leader and LDF convener EP Jayarajan for shoving Youth Congress workers on an aircraft at the Thiruvananthapuram Airport. Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President K Sudhakaran warned of legal action while backing his three young party activists who were booked over the incident a week ago.
"They wanted to air their protest against the Chief Minister. Did they hold weapons? Did they reach near the Chief Minister? It was after the Chief Minister alighted from the flight, they uttered, "protest, protest". This was revealed by none other than EP Jayarajan and not me," Sudhakaran said.
"My association is not limited to one of the accused, Farzeen Majid, in the case. All those workers who stand behind me now are close to me. They are protecting my life. They are ready to sacrifice their lives for me," he said while also flagging the disciplinary action against the teacher who was part of the in-flight protest.
Sudhakaran said that there was no justification in dismissing Farzeen from the teaching service.
"Do we have courts and a legal system to counter such illegal decisions?" He commented.
'No retaliatory attacks'
Sudhakaran also referred to the sporadic attack on Congress party offices by CPM backers following the protest against the CM on the IndiGo flight that landed at the Thiruvananthapuram Airport.
"They will learn lessons only if Congress follows a tit-for-tat approach. But we are not going to retaliate. We don't pursue such a line. People will give a befitting reply to their misdeeds," Sudhakaran added.
On Swapna's claims
The Congress leader wondered why the Chief Minister was not filing a case against gold smuggling case accused Swapna Suresh if her utterances were found to be wrong. Swapna had claimed the CM has links to a smuggling racket and laundered money abroad. The in-flight protest was part of Congress's agitation against the CM over these allegations.
Payyanur CPM scandal
Referring to the financial irregularities in the CPM's Payyanur area committee, the KPCC president said that the act of embezzlement of martyrs' relief fund was like eating the flesh of a corpse.
He demanded the resignation of Payyanur MLA Madhusoodanan over the scandal.
We will do whatever is legally possible to bring the guilty to the book. It is not the CPM which has to probe the embezzlement since money has been collected from the public, Sudhakaran said.
He also regretted that a true Communist leader and former CPM area committee secretary V Kunhikrishnan, who led a selfless public service for decades, had to retire from politics of because of CPM's efforts to save the skin of the corrupt leaders involved in the case.
On Uralungal
The Congress state chief also flayed the CPM nexus with the Uralungal Labour Society.
"The CPM and the Chief Minister were protecting the Uralungal Labour Society just like a newborn child in order to protect their corrupt deeds.
Tenders for major work have been given to the Society without inviting tenders. Other contractors are withdrawing from the major civil works since nothing can be done against this wrong practice.
